Together Alone
by MimmaMell
Summary: They met one night under bad circumstances. At first it was him that needed the help, but he then saw her fear and pain. What was she afraid of? Love?
1. Broken

**A/N:** Hi there! Just to let you all know, English is not my native language, so if you find some mistakes don't kill me right away, just let me know and I will correct them.  
>I've tried my best not to let them go OOC, but if they did I apologize. I don't even know if anyone will read this, I was doing it more for myself(yes, I'm selfish like that). Anyway, if you do, let me know what you think. This story is almost finished, so I will update regularly! This is me expressing my love towards HitsuRuki! :) Thank you for reading!<p>

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Bleach!

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><p><strong>Together Alone<strong>

_Broken_

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><p>He was not going to take this anymore. Everything he had done in his life was for her and now... <em>No, Hitsugaya Toshiro, the Captain of the 10<em>_th__ Division will not be used like this, humiliated like this. No, not anymore. _He wanted to kill him, kill her, yell... do something, anything, the rage had been eating him for the last hour, but he just stood there. Stood by that cherry tree, motionless. The weather started to change quickly, and before he knew there was a snow storm on the way. But he didn't care; he just stood there looking at the ground. He couldn't even speak, or cry, not that he would allow that in the first place. Everything was clear now. He just couldn't understand why he hasn't seen that before. It was clear as a day that she wanted nothing to do with him. At least, not in a way he did. First he blamed Aizen and thought he made her think the way she did, and then he thought she was hurt and confused, so he let her be. He thought that if she had time to think about everything, about all the bad things that man has done, she would see that she could only relay on one person and one person only – him. And indeed, she got better, she started to laugh and go out of her room, but she was still acting the same way towards him, nothing has changed. And when he asked her _is everything alright _and_ does she want to talk about anything_, she would just smile and say that everything is okay, and that he shouldn't worry about her that much. Hitsugaya Toshiro was not a stupid man, he knew that she was suffering but the fact that she wouldn't share her thoughts with him was confusing. He was her best friend, the only person she could always count on, even after she defended Aizen, he was silent, he tried to understand her. Still, she decided to take comfort in that man. That _blond jerk_. Face of that man appeared in his mind and he just exploded. He began to hit that cherry tree with his fists the hardest he could. He could feel the pain and his hands were bleeding, but he just didn't care. He just _fucking didn't care_.

"Captain, you're going to get really hurt that way." The girl said, standing near the pond that was three feet away from that cherry tree. She was standing there for the last 10 minutes and he has done the same thing over and over again.

"Go away Kuchiki!" Toshiro said not even looking at her, and he hasn't even tried to hide anger in his voice. He knew it was obvious, he was hitting a damn tree and she was there for at least 10 minutes watching him. He just couldn't erase that image in his head. That man…and her.

"I will if you stop doing that…Captain." She added the last part shyly, because she felt she was indeed asking too much from him right now. He was angry to a point that a storm has started in whole Soul Society and if she had to be a new object of his hatred right this moment, it's better that than some innocent bystander. She knew she was far from being innocent.

"Kuchiki…" He said impatiently and took a deep breath, because he knew he had to calm down just a little, or he would cut her trout right that second, "I'm going to say this one last time…GO AWAY!"

She nearly jumped when he shouted that last part and she knew that this was not her business, but she couldn't just leave a Captain like this. He was a mess. His face was red from anger, clothes wet and hands covered in blood. No, she was not planning on leaving now. Not Kuchiki Rukia. She knew pain very well, too well.

"I said that I will when-" she couldn't even finish that sentence because she was pushed on the nearest tree by that white-haired Captain that was now hissing in her face. She could feel the pain flowing through her body from the sudden impact. When she raised her head, and met those angry teal orbs she saw them softening the moment she looked at them. He then let her go and turned his back. His body was still stiff from anger and she could see his hands that were bloody and clenched in fists.

"There, I stopped. Now…go."

"Yes sir!" And with that she left.

He shouldn't have done that. But he really didn't care at this point; he was still trying to get rid of that image in his head. He wanted to help her, be with her and protect her _and she chose that blond prick_.

"How the hell did I become like this?" He wasn't even sure who was he asking that, because it was obvious he didn't have an answer. _Am I that desperate, that pathetic? What the hell did I do this whole time? And why?_ _For who? For that bitch that doesn't even know I exist. _

His thoughts have been interrupted by loud noises that came from a forest. Toshiro couldn't see anything from the trees that were hiding whatever was happening in there. He then heard a shout and seconds after that he senesced a hollow reiatsu and somebody else… "Kuchiki..."

When he got there he could see that he really wasn't needed in a first place. Rukia was cutting that hollow like it was made from sand. Her body moved like there was music in the background and Toshiro remembered that her attacks were indeed called dances. Even though she had a lot of openings and mistakes in her attacks he was now convinced why she became a vice-captain in a first place. That woman had power and force behind those dances. And before he knew hollow was defeated.

"Not bad." He said before even thinking why the hell speak to her in a first place! She annoyed him and made him angrier not two minutes before this.

"Thank you Captain!" And teal met violet once again. He broke the gaze and turned around to leave but then curiosity got the best of him.

"Kuchiki…"

"Yes sir?" Rukia was standing in the mud, still holding Sode no Shirayuki in her hands. The fight that just happened didn't affect her much, but she was still annoyed because her clothes were soaking wet and covered with mud. And then this Captain appeared. She worried for a second he would scold her for everything that happened few minutes before. It really wasn't her place to interrupt him, but it was that or someone else getting hurt. She really didn't have any other option.

"What the hell are you doing here in 2 in the morning?" And the moment he said it, he regretted it. Why the hell did he have a need to talk to her…twice? Rukia was little surprised, but soon she snapped out of it.

"I am sorry Captain, I felt the storm coming so I just followed your reiatsu." She said bowing down, her violet orbs now looking at the ground.

"Why?" And once again he asked her to speak. _What the hell Toshiro? Just. Fucking. Leave. _But he wasn't moving.

"I don't know. I just felt that I should."

_What the hell? She just felt that she should? This girl is plain weird._ After a few seconds he felt that he could move again, so he just turned his back and left, not even saying a word to that petite shinigami who was still standing there, looking at the ground.

But it didn't matter. Rukia knew that look, and the pain. But most of all, she knew how hard he worked to keep it sealed in him, to not show it to anyone, not even to himself. She was just glad she saved any innocent bystander, who would eventually cross ways with Hitsugaya Toshiro, from getting hurt. He shot one trace of anger towards her and that made him calm, even if it was just a little, it was enough. But she knew, that rage will either come up at one point or eat him whole inside. And it was his choice and his choice only. Not that she cared that much. And when she thinks about it, she's not even sure why the hell she was even here in the first place? _Must've been the storm. _But deep down she knew it was more than that.

When Aizen was defeated and Rukia said her goodbyes to Ichigo and others she returned to Soul Society and started her training along with anyone else. She knew she can no longer be weak like she was and endanger everyone around her just because she couldn't protect herself. She could no longer use her brother or death of Kaien as an excuse why she wasn't trying harder. She could no longer bow down to every order and wish that came from Kuchiki mansion. She just couldn't. She had to try harder, fight better and be stronger, lives of her friends, family and companions depended on the fact how well she'll do out there. It was not a choice, not a question…she _had to_ do it. She no longer questioned her existence. It was them all along. She fought and lived for them, and had no right to abandon them. Not now, not ever. Now she could finally understand Ichigo and his will, his strength and power. Once she thought that every emotion was useless and considered as a flaw. Not anymore. Ichigo taught her that and she was grateful. It was not going to go in vein.

Months passed and her routine did not change at all. She would get up in 5 in the morning and go to the training ground. And every day she found him there. They ignored each other and that didn't bother her. She was just glad someone else had the same need. Need for power. He had his reasons and she had hers, but in the end it was the same thing – to protect. She knew his reasons had something to do with Momo, and her betrayal – if you could even call it that. She understood the girl, it's not easy to let go of your believes no matter what others think. And Momo believed in Aizen. If it was Rukia in her place and the man in question was Kaien, maybe she would've done the same thing. Maybe everyone would. They teach you to trust your elders, to be ready to give your life for them. But that's not why Momo was guilty. Momo choose to believe in Aizens word over Toshiro's and maybe that was the reason he was hurt in a first place. If it was Rukia and Ichigo, or Rukia and Renji she would never question them for something like that. For a murder. _Did Momo really think Captain Hitsugaya could kill him? A captain, who was innocent at the time? Why? Is it her love for that awful man? Love – can it really make you do those things? Blur your mind to a level you question your own friends and family?_ How would she know? Rukia was never in love, right?

She would watch him sometimes. His techniques, his style and power. And all those questions would pop up in her mind. _Was it their friendship that made him forgive her, or was it….love?_ But quickly she would concentrate on her own practice. It wasn't her style to but in in other people business. After that she would go to her squad, because she had a lot of work to do now that she was a lieutenant. It wasn't something she didn't know how to do, it was the same when she was unseated, it was just doubled now. Soon after they got back from war Captain-Commander Yamamoto decided it was time to sort out empty seats in Gotei 13, and her captain decided to give her this position no matter what Byakuya said. Byakuya was probably pissed, but he didn't say a word about it. Maybe it was because of that war. Rukia did in fact beat an Espada all alone. But unlike everybody else she didn't consider that as something to be proud of, because if her brother haven't came when he did, she would be dead, and that battle was not a success, it was luck. So she decided it was time for a change. If it was Rukia from year ago she would've declined that position because she knew how her brother would react to that, but she didn't… Why? Because it was time to move from that spot she was in ever since Kaien's death. That battle did one thing good, and it had to do with Rukia's forgiveness. She forgave herself. She knew Kaien was right when he asked her to kill him and it was indeed the right thing to do at that moment. At least his heart was safe now.

But nights were very hard on her. She felt alone and bored most of the time. She didn't know why but she couldn't sleep much ever since that war. And the fact she was now a lieutenant she had to move to their quarters, so she was alone in a room right next to Captain Ukitake, and most of the time he wasn't even there due to his sickness. Sometimes she would read the books she brought from Ichigo, but those books were very confusing to her. All of them talked about something she didn't understand - love. It was all from a guy named Shakespeare; apparently Ichigo liked him and his writing. And it was good, but it was confusing to her. _Love. Why is that so important? Everywhere I go there's that word again. Love. _Humans wrote books, songs, plays, movies…everyone longed for it, wanted it, searched for it. Why? She understood the concept, but the purpose wasn't clear to her.

When she heard a male voice she then came to her senses and saw that she was still in that woods staring at the ground, and wet from snow storm that was still going on.

"Kuchiki, what the hell is wrong with you? Go home."

When she lifted her head she saw him standing there, blood still on his hands.

"Sorry Captain. I'll leave now" and she started to move, but then turned around and said: "You should go home too, it's late and too cold, even for you and me Captain." And it was. It was below freezing. The only reason they haven't collapsed from it, staying there all wet, was their power alone – ice. And then she left.

_What the hell is it with that girl? She just stared at the ground for at least 15 minutes... Oh well, whom am I to talk. Fucking tree. _He looked at his hands that were now pulsating from pain. Blood still dropping and _she was right, it was too cold here_. So he decided to go home. _I need to get some sleep before tomorrow; Matsumoto will laugh if I come after her. I wouldn't see the end of it. _He decided to walk, not to use flash step, he needed to calm down, to think. And he was at least half hour away from his division, that would give him enough time to at least start breathing normally again. _I need to change this. I can no longer be like this. She's not worth this much trouble. And I am a Captain, I have other responsibilities. _Yes, it was all true. But can you just decide something and ignore your feelings? Can you? Can you just ignore everything and believe it will go away eventually? He knew better that this, but it was the only way to keep his sanity. Maybe Momo thought about him as a friend, and she wasn't the one to blame for his feeling right now, but that didn't matter to him. In his mind she betrayed him. In his mind she chose Kira over him. And work was his only choice right now, his only way out of this.

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><p>"Oh, good morning Shiro-chan! What brings you here so early in the morning?" Ukitake was really a morning person. That or he had too much coffee. Toshiro didn't get much sleep last night and when he saw that Matsumoto will be gone this whole day he wasn't feeling any better. But the last drop was the fact that he had to stop by division 13 to get the evaluation for new members. He was not in the mood for Ukitake or his candy right now. It didn't matter to that man that Toshiro was not a child anymore, he was still treating him like one. And yes, Toshiro hated that. Right now he would love to know who put his division with this one for that <em>damn evaluation<em>. He would kill that person right on the spot.

"Good morning Ukitake. I came for evaluation papers."

"Evaluation papers? I don't know anything about that. I just came home this morning. I was away for 3 weeks at least." Ukitake said casually with soft smile on his features and then took a sip of tea. Toshiro looked at him for a moment and then frowned.

"Then what the hell am I supposed to do now?" No, scratch that…this was the last drop. Toshiro was frickin' furious.

"Oh calm down Shiro-chan." He said waving his hand. "It's nothing to be mad about. I know who can help us!" Ukitake placed the cup back on the table and then got up and went to the door.

"RUKIA? RUKIA, COME, WE NEED YOUR HELP!" When he yelled Toshiro could feel the vein on his forehead pulsating.

He heard someone running trough hallway and then she came. Rukia was all muddy and her hair was a mess. She looked like she was rolling in that mud for a while. Her eyebrows were up and eyes slightly widen. She was looking at her Captain for a moment and then she switched the gaze at Toshiro after realizing he was standing there too.

"Good morning Captain Hitsugaya!" Toshiro just nodded and kept looking at her. She was indeed a mess, but still graceful as ever. That was strange about her. No matter what she was doing she wore that grace around her. _Must be a Kuchiki thing_ he thought.

"Rukia, we need your help." Ukitake said interrupting the looks between the two. "Well, Shiro-chan does." Ukitake could see a vein pop on Toshiro's forehead when he said his name, so he chuckled.

"How can I help you Captain?"

"I need evaluation papers. They said your division will be working with tenth this year." He said, his voice showing boredom, still looking at her. _How can she help with this?_

"Oh…OH! That's not a problem. Will you wait here for couple of minutes, I just have to change?" Apparently Rukia just now realized her kimono had mud all over. She even had mud on her arms and face.

"Fine." Was all he could say right now. _WHAT? This has to be a joke?_ The moment she left he turned to Ukitake. But before he could mutter a word Ukitake had a smile on his face and started talking.

"Yes Shiro-chan, Rukia can do evaluation. Matter of fact…" he said now turning his gaze at the wall, with serious face and a flicker of sadness in his eyes. "…she does everything around here. I feel sorry for her sometimes, but this disease won't let me stay here for long, so she has to do all of it. She even trains recruits." He placed one finger on his chin in thought. "Come to think of it, I think she was just doing that."

It's small to say Toshiro was amazed. He was beyond that. And you could see that, because his mouth was slightly open and eyes widened, he was speechless. Ukitake must've seen that because he laughed.

"I will have to go now. I hope you don't mind Shiro-chan, but I have a lot of work to do and not much time, since I'll been leaving again in three days. If you need anything else, just ask Rukia, I guarantee she can help." Toshiro just nodded and Ukitake left still amused because of Toshiro's reaction. _I guess I would be surprised too, if I had Matsumoto for a lieutenant._ He must've passed Rukia on hallway because Toshiro heard them speaking. Soon after that she came in the office, now clean and fresh.

"I'm sorry I kept you waiting Captain. I'll find those papers right now, but… Captain Ukitake said you will need to approve all the evaluation, because he'll be gone again and has no time to do that. I hope that's acceptable?" She said looking at his hands that were now healed and had no proof of what was going on last night. The only thing that could be proof that Rukia didn't hallucinate last night was snow that was on the grounds. It stopped around 4am, probably the hour Captain Hitsugaya fell asleep. She then lifted her head because he put those hands behind his back obviously aware of her gaze. And yes, violet met teal once again, but teal was not angry like last night and Rukia felt easier because of that. She was really worried for him.

"That won't be a problem. I have to do mine either way."

"Great. There they are." She said now at the Captain Ukitake's table. "Those are the ones from the students that are finishing this year, and this one are from the new recruits. I filed them in alphabetical order."

He then walked to the table and sat on the nearest chair looking at the papers Rukia just handed to him. He was really amazed. They were all sorted perfectly and every evaluation was neatly done. His face must've been weird, because Rukia then asked:

"Is everything okay Captain? Did I do something wrong?"

"What?" she broke his strain of thought "Oh…no, no, they are fine. It's just…" Even he didn't know what to say, what to ask. _Did she really do all of this? When? I can see her every morning on training grounds, and she was out late last night? _Rukia was silent. She could see that he was thinking of something, and after last night she was kind of scared of his reactions, so she didn't ask anything. He then lifted his head and looked at those violet orbs.

"I wanted to apologize Kuchiki." He said almost whispering.

"What? Why?"

"I wasn't myself last night." His gaze was now on his hands. He really looked tired and…sad maybe? She couldn't tell. But she was too surprised to even think about that. _Captain Hitsugaya apologized? What?_

"What?" Yes, she was indeed surprised. Her expression was really funny. Her eyes were wide in shock and lips slightly open. Toshiro couldn't help but smirk. _I was right, this girl is plain weird. _But his face turned serious right away.

"I said that I wanted to apologize, why are you so surprised? I could've killed you last night." He said still looking at her.

"Oh that… No need to apologize Captain. You told me to leave, it was my fault."

Toshiro just watched her. This girl was really strange. When she was on the training ground he could see and feel her power, but somehow she always looked too fragile. And he knew her side when she was with that substitute and then again when her brother showed up. Apparently she had many faces, all similar but different. But that grace never left her side. Whatever she did she made it seem so simple and yet graceful. But he wondered… what was she really like? There was something else there. Under that stoic face. There were moments you could see her, but that disappeared really quickly. Why?

"RUKIA!" That broke that gaze they held. Someone was yelling from the hallway. And they soon discovered who it was, because red headed lieutenant soon ran into the office.

"Rukia…" He almost sat on the floor. He was running like crazy, so he could barely breathe. "Go to the training grounds. Some of… your recruits made a mess. Apparently…" The man couldn't catch a breath. "…apparently they were playing around with kido and now one of them is stuck in binding spell…I think."

"WHAT?" Okay, this was new to Toshiro. She was pissed. He kind of liked this look. "I told those fools to wait for me. DAMN IT!" She dropped all the papers on the table angry. "Sorry Captain, I'll be right back."

"I'm coming with you Kuchiki." Why, he didn't know. Maybe he wanted to see more of that face. And it was going to be pretty interesting to watch her with those recruits. He wanted to know.

"O-okay." Then they all ran to the training ground. When Rukia started to walk towards those recruits Renji and Toshiro stayed near fence. Renji then turned to Captain Hitsugaya with smirk.

"This is going to be very interesting. I could've managed this when I saw it, but this way…oh they are getting their ass kicked." Toshiro wanted to share that excitement, but his expression was as always, brows narrowed and face serious.

"Abarai…" That's all he said. But he was kind of glad Renji called Rukia for this. _Damn it Toshiro, you should go work, not play games with this red-headed fool. I feel like Matsumoto right now._ They then turned their heads back to Rukia, who was now standing right in front of those recruits. Except for the one stuck in binding spell that was still lying on the ground, they were all making a formation. Like the one you can see in the army. And they were all serious and you could almost read fear in their eyes. _Oh, she's __good_, Toshiro thought and now he understood why Renji came all that way to get her. _This IS going to be very interesting_.

"WHO DID THIS?" Rukia was seriously pissed. She didn't get much sleep last night, and she was working since 5 this morning. And she was with these damn recruits since 7:30 and it was 10:30 now. She couldn't even remember if she had breakfast. She was NOT in the mood. They all just stood there looking at the ground; nobody moved or said a word. She took a deep breath, to calm herself. The anger was unbearable, but she really needed to calm down. "I asked you something. If you don't answer me I will find you all responsible and you will ALL pay for this."

Renji was seriously enjoying this. He was suppressing his laughter because he knew if Rukia saw, all of her anger will go towards him. _Not going to let that happen._ And Toshiro… he was again amazed. _They fucking fear her. How did she manage to make them fear her? She's so…petite._

"Fine. If this is what you want, then…"

"It was me. I am sorry lieutenant Kuchiki. It was my fault. We got in to a fight and-" the boy with blonde hair was then interrupted by a very, very angry shinigami.

"I haven't asked for your reasons, I only asked who did it. Fine, you and this one on the ground will do all of the laps again and then I want to see all kido spells you know, and you will do them on one another. I want to see your tactics of dodging. I will be back in a half an hour. Be ready. The rest of you can rest." And with that she turned and started walking towards Toshiro and Renji. She didn't even bother freeing that poor boy still lying on the ground.

"Can I come to watch?"

"No Renji. This is not a game. I'm really tired and they are really pissing me of. I specifically told them I will be back soon. I left them for 20 minutes and this is what happened. I swear…" And then she saw Captain Hitsugaya standing there. His teal orbs locked with her violet ones. And her expression changed. "I am sorry Captain. You were wasting your time because of my recruits-"

"Our recruits. They are mine too, and it's not a problem Kuchiki. But…I have to go now. When you finish this come by to my office and bring the papers, I still have to check everything, meet those recruits and approve." She just nodded, and he left with flash step.

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><p>He was seriously surprised. That girl had many sides he still didn't know. <em>Why am I so interested in this? She's a lieutenant; of course she knew how to deal with them. But… how can somebody be scared of those violet eyes? What the hell Toshiro? I'm going crazy. Where is that damn Matsumoto?<em>

He was now in his office, already working on some papers, and of course Matsumoto still hasn't been there. He could see her table was the same as of this morning and that note she left was still on his. _She can come early to leave a note that she will not be working, but she can't show up for work that early in a first place? Typical._ And when he stopped what he was doing, he remembered something he wanted to forget ever since last night. Momo. And again that image popped in his head. He hasn't seen her or that blonde jerk since last night. _How could she choose that fucking idiot? What the hell am I doing? This is got to stop! But this fucking rage… I could kill them right now. _He was really mad. Maybe more at himself. He had lost control twice last night. He wasn't even thinking properly. But that scene made his blood boil. And the mere fact that it kept repeating itself over and over in his mind didn't help at all. He was now standing, his head lowered and hands placed on his desk and clutched in fists. He wasn't mad, he was fucking furious. Everything just kept replaying itself: Aizen, that bloody war, Momo, Kira…everything.

"Captain…" there they are again. Teal orbs mad, no…furious. Toshiro was still standing in the same way, he just lifted his head to see the person who was talking to him. And there they are again…violet was once again there when he lost his control. Rukia could only do one thing here. "Captain, follow me!" And then she flash stepped out of his office. He couldn't even ask her why, he just followed.

"What the hell Kuchiki? Why are we here?" They were standing near that forest once again. He could see that cherry tree and the pond. Sun was now right above them. It was near 12 o'clock.

"Fight me Captain!"

"WHAT?"

"I said, fight me!" And with that she unsheathed her sword and was already in fighting stance.

"Kuchiki…" There it was again, that impatient voice. He was about to break down, he could not control it.

"Captain, do not ask me what am I doing, just get your sword and fight damn it. You cannot go on like that. It will eat you from inside out. FIGHT ME!" And that did it. He got his sword and attacked. Even he was surprised why he did it, and more surprised how she knew. But he was fucking furious. He didn't even try to go easy on her, but she held her stance good. He was indeed too powerful for her, but it was not the first time she fought someone that had that much more power than her. She knew defense well, too well if you ask her. Soon, everything was frozen around them. No, it was not because of their shikai, they never went in that form, it was from Hitsugaya himself, his rage… And Rukia was already breathing heavily; sweat dropping from her forehead, and hands getting tired because of constant try to defend herself. _Damn it, he has power! This is going to be very hard. It's no wonder that he is a captain._ _And why is he so tall? Focus Rukia, damn it! _But it was too late. The moment her defense flickered she was cut. Her arm now had serious injury. And the moment he saw that, he stopped. She was hurt. He hurt her. _What the hell Toshiro?_

"Kuchiki…damn it! DAMN IT!"

"It's okay Captain, it's just a cut." She said getting up. It was really hard to do that, but she knew she had to. It wasn't his fault, she made him angry to a point he would attack her. But the moment she stood up she felt weak again and started to fall, but she never touched the ground. Toshiro was quick enough to catch her. He basically wrapped his hands around her waist, her head near his chest. He then put her on the ground and started healing her arm. She was very light, petite and soft. It was a great contrast from her personality. At least the parts he knew. And she was too damn stubborn if you ask him. She closed her eyes. That feeling was really soothing her. When he was healing her she could almost feel the ice on her skin and it was spreading onto her whole body. It felt nice. He felt nice.

"What the hell Kuchiki…why did you provoke me? I could've have killed you. And this is the second time since last night. What were you thinking?" He was still healing her, one hand on hers and the other was on her stomach, and when her eyes opened his gaze again softened, just like last night. _What is it with this girl?_

"Captain… I understand." That was all she said before she closed her eyes again, trying to enjoy that ice on her body. It really felt great. It was like she was floating and breathing like never before. _What is that? How does he do that?_

"Kuchiki…I could've had hurt you… I did actually! It could've been worse than this. Why did you…" His expression softened. He couldn't even finish that sentence. How could he do this to her…twice? She then opened her eyes, and placed her other hand on the one on her stomach, on his. His eyes were wide open now. When he looked at her she was simply smiling, looking at him and smiling. And this was in fact calming him.

"Captain Hitsugaya… this is bad. Believe me when I say it…you can walk like this for a long time, but…but when you explode…Whatever it is, let it go. Forgive and let go. Yes…I know it's easy to just say that, but when you decide to make peace with yourself it will come easier than you think." If he was amazed with this woman before, than this what he felt right now was too big to describe with that word alone.

"How did you…"

"Know? It wasn't too hard to guess. I saw you on the training ground and I could see that you were holding back on every attack… and that was anger. I could see the rage last night. So… it wasn't very hard to guess with everything that happened around here." The wound was healed, and she was a bit disappointed because ice immediately left her body. Toshiro helped her stand up, still looking at her. Her hands were small and fragile. He wondered how she had that strong defense with these fragile and soft hands. You couldn't even see one bruise on them. Few seconds later he came to his senses and saw he was still holding her hand so he let go, but their gaze never broke.

"Kuchiki…" What was he supposed to say? Should he apologize? _Oh, but that went just great the last time._ Should he say _thank you_? She wasn't supposed to see him like this, no one was. He cursed himself in his mind once again. He was a Captain, he was not supposed to behave like this. But she was right, if he continues like this it will transit in to a full fury and he will lose all control he had left.

"And well, I needed the exercise, those morning trainings weren't doing much for me anyway." The smile winded on the petite woman face. She really did understand his pain and loss. But she didn't know him that well, so she knew this must've been awkward for him, just as it was for her. When she saw he wasn't moving at all she remembered. "Captain…we should go. Those papers are waiting in your office."

_Papers? What papers? Oh damn it, evaluation!_ Toshiro then looked at the sky and thought _at least the storm hasn't come_. Even though everyone thought he could control it, it wasn't the whole truth. He could summon it, but if he's not in control of his emotions he cannot make it go away, or even control its appearance if he was angry just like last night. Until now it was the only thing that gave him away. Until now…

"Yeah, we should go." So they started walking to 10th. Half an hour walk would do them good, will do him good.


	2. Beneath

**A/N: **Hi again! This update came sooner than I thought. It's my way of saying thank you to all of you that placed this story in Story Alert and few of you actually placed it in your favorites(I'm honored)! And a big thank you to my reviewers!  
>I'm already trough the second part of this story, so I will be taking my time to work on that. There's still some things I have to delete, correct and replace. Anyway... second chapter. It just continues from where I left off. I hope you like it!<p>

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Bleach!

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><p><strong>Together Alone<strong>

_Beneath_

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><p>It was a pretty hot day, the sun kept burning his skin, and there were not enough trees to hide him from that, but even though Toshiro didn't like the heat this walk was kind of relaxing for him. He was glad this girl understood the importance of silence and gave him enough time to think. She never even uttered a word after they started walking and she was walking slightly behind him, giving him enough space and time to calm down. He was grateful for that. Toshiro wasn't talkative guy to begin with. He wasn't the guy who would just spill his problems and ask for an advice, especially not from a girl he hardly knew. But it was strange to him…how she knew what was going on in his head. <em>She must be pretty perspective…hell, I would be too if I had to live with that brother of hers. The man hasn't changed that expression since I've met him. <em>And when he thought about it, this war hasn't been easy for her also. Actually, her whole life wasn't easy for her, at least the parts he knew. And still…she's here, able to smile and work. _How_?

When they finally arrived in his office Toshiro turned around to look at the girl and saw she was really exhausted. Her face was pale and she had black circles around her eyes.

"Kuchiki?"

"Yes sir?"

"When was the last time you've eaten?"

She was mildly surprised at this question. She didn't even know the time let alone when did she have her last meal.

"I-I don't know."

"Tsk" Frown appeared on his face. He placed his sword on the table and then went straight to the hallway and into another room. Rukia just stood near the entrance not sure what to do exactly. Was she supposed to enter now and work, or leave? She then looked at his office, maybe trying to decipher him or to kill the time. His office was really simple looking one. Nothing too personal was exposed to a mere eye, except maybe for the books that were on shelves behind his dark-wood desk. Before she could even stop herself she was already near them trying to read the covers. They were all neatly placed on the shelves, not one out of order. She recognized Shakespeare, he had a whole set, leather bound. There was also Camus, Rousseau, Confucius and a lot of others she didn't recognize. But before she could even take one of the books she heard steps coming towards her. She only had time to turn her back to bookshelf and act innocent, because in her mind she was doing something she wasn't supposed to do. Toshiro was holding a plate of onigiri that he placed on the smaller table near the sofa, frown still visible on his face.

"I forgot the tea." And again he was heading towards that other room. Rukia was really surprised at this gesture and mildly embarrassed. If she could she would've flash stepped out of his office and bury her head in the ground.

"There. I hope you like green one." He said placing it on the table and then looking at her. She was really embarrassed to the point of blushing. Toshiro couldn't understand why she was so restless. _Was the tea bad idea?_ _Who hates tea?_ "What?"

"N-nothing sir. Green one is fine, but… I'm not really-"

"Tsk! Kuchiki, you will eat. We still have to finish all this paperwork, and I'm not going to be the one responsible if you faint in the middle of it. Is that clear?"

"Y-yes sir!"

He then sat on the sofa and took one himself and started eating, so Rukia did the same but she sat on the opposite end. She would have sat somewhere else, but the only other option was floor, or chairs near his and Matsumoto's table and she wasn't sure how would he react if he saw her eating above the papers they had to complete.

"So, have you found something you like?"

"What?"

"Books. I saw you looking at them. Have you found something you would like to read?" He was now looking at her and again she began to blush, his voice gave a hint of irritation. _It's a habit of hers._

"I don't know sir. I only recognized half of the writers."

"Which ones did you recognize?"

"Well… I read Shakespeare and-"

"You read Shakespeare?" She didn't seem the type for Shakespeare to Toshiro.

"Yeah, but…"

"But what?" And she wasn't.

"I didn't quite understand it. I mean, I did like the comedies and histories and even a few poems, but I read only one tragedy and it was confusing for me." And it was. It talked about one thing Rukia never experienced or just maybe didn't understand even if she did.

"Hm… Then what are the others you read that are out there?"

"And I liked?" He just nodded. "One of them is Camus."

"Camus?" A brow was raised. He was a little surprised to hear this.

"Yes sir. I enjoy his writings. Especially _The Stranger_ and _The Plague_. They both somehow talk about the destiny and that circle of life that we cannot escape, and I find that very interesting."

"I see." He then looked at the window. He didn't picture her this way at all. Maybe it was shallow of him, but…the picture of this girl in his mind was completely different. But after today and this now…it sure did change.

"Sir?"

"Hm?" He was lost in his thoughts again.

"Should we do the papers now?" Rukia said shyly.

"Ah yes. You can sit at Matsumoto's table." He said standing up and walking to his desk. "How many of them are students?"

"One hundred and thirty six are students sir, and we have thirty recruits."

"Very well. I will evaluate half of the students tomorrow at the training ground and the other half the day after that." This is going to be too much work for them. _If only I had a lieutenant, and not Matsumoto. I will definitely kill her when I see her! _But this was good, this was his escape, the way to stay sane for a little longer. Work.

"I did that already…sir." Silence. Nothing but silence. He wasn't surprised, no, he was fucking shocked! And his face showed it very well. His eyes were open widely and brows raised. He just kept looking at her. Silence. And Rukia was again embarrassed. This man could do that to her easily…make her blush over and over again. She wasn't sure why, but he did.

"You what?" Yes, that was the only thing he could mutter now. _There is no way this girl is telling the truth! _

"Y-yes sir. I did the evaluation two days ago. That's why Captain Ukitake asked you to assist, because even though I did that, it still needs an approval of a captain." Rukia said switching her gaze constantly from him to floor. She couldn't understand why he was surprised at this.

"H-how?" And he cursed himself in his mind for stuttering. _This girl is…What is she? _Even though he didn't realize it that moment, but that girl became really interesting to him.

"Oh it wasn't too hard, I did that last year too. But Captain, you still need to approve."

"Fine." Toshiro quickly regained his usual stoic face, bit embarrassed for his reaction. "Then that's what I'll do tomorrow morning. We'll meet at the training ground at 8."

Rukia nodded and started to go through the papers that were placed on Matsumoto's desk. He took one look at her and reacted impulsively.

"Kuchiki…"

"Yes sir?"

"You should go get some sleep, I'll finish this and the rest we'll do tomorrow."

"But Captain-"

"Go home Kuchiki. I can see that you're tired and you will need your strength tomorrow, because it will be a long day. And don't make me repeat myself again!" Authoritative as always, but his voice was much softer than usual, because now he really respected the girl.

"Yes sir!" What else could she say? He was a Captain and this was a direct order. She then started to walk towards the exit, but stopped and turned around.

"Captain?"

"Hm?" Lazily lifting his gaze from stack of papers to look at her.

"Thank you for the food." And then she turned around and left.

He just smiled. He was supposed to thank her, not other way around. She did much more for him today and she was thanking him? But he smiled. He hasn't done that in a long time and he was once again surprised. That girl did that the whole day; just left him surprised and speechless over and over. He then lowered his head to look at the papers, he still had a lot of work to do and it was just little past 2.

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><p>The halls were crowded with people, Rukia could not even see where she was going, and if you ask her it had nothing to do with her height, <em>it was just too crowded<em>. She wasn't even sure how could all those people fit in here, there were just too many of them. They were shouting, pushing one another and it was just one massive clatter. She tried to hurry and get to the training grounds as quickly as she could, but so were those people around her. Apparently they were all students that she called yesterday to meet Captain Hitsugaya and her on the training ground. It was near 8 and she was in a hurry, she hated to be late, especially when she had to meet a captain, and she knew that _this_ Captain was very punctual and hated the people that are not. You could see his rage every time Matsumoto was late for captain-lieutenant meetings. She did not want that to happen to her. But there were too many of them around her and she immediately cursed herself in her mind for not coming earlier. So, soon enough, from all the noise and pushing that was happening, she became angry…no scratch that, she was pissed.

"STOP MOVING!" The halls were ringing with her voice. And those students…well, they were all frozen in the spot, nobody moved, not even a finger. When they saw who shouted they were scared, really scared. So they started to move towards the walls, their heads lowered, so this petite lieutenant can pass. And she did. A smirk grew on her face, because she really did enjoy the position and the power it gave her, even though she would never admit that out loud. She then started to walk a bit faster and they all just followed her. When she was nearing the training grounds it looked as she was leading an army. Very scared one, but still an army.

Toshiro was standing there with a couple of students that arrived early. When he saw her, and those scared students behind her, a smirk grow on his face. _There she is again, that other Kuchiki, the authoritative one._ But as soon as she saw him, the expression became softer, and that smirk she held was now a soft smile.

"Good morning Captain." Small bow and respective expression. She really respected her superiors and knew how to address them properly. That part came from being a noble, you _had to_ learn that.

"Good morning lieutenant." Toshiro slightly nodded and then looked at the students that were now forming a straight line, still scared and still looking at the ground. Toshiro smirked again. It was fun to watch them, they really were scared of her and now even more because he was there. "Is everyone here?"

Rukia then turned around to look at them and nodded. "Yes, I believe this is all of them."

"Very well, then we'll start." He then walked to them and cleared his throat. "I am Hitsugaya Toshiro, the Captain of 10th division and I believe you already know Kuchiki Rukia, lieutenant of division 13." He gestured with his hand towards her and she nodded and few students did the same thing. "I hope you all know the importance of this test, and will cooperate so we can finish this as quickly as we can. Lieutenant Kuchiki already did most of the work, so I'm only left with the approval." That was a compliment and Rukia knew that...

Four hours later they were done. And Toshiro thanked the gods because he was really starting to lose his patience. In his opinion, half of them were useless, maybe even more than that, and the other half was really just little above his "poorly performing" standard. He knew he has to lover the standards, or they would end up with no recruits next year. But, he was not pleased, not pleased at all and it showed. He then turned and started walking towards Rukia who was standing near the fence scribbling something on the piece of paper. When she saw him and his expression, she knew what was going on, so she just smiled in an amusement. He was indeed too strict, and he reminded her of her brother, he was similar in that aspect.

"Captain?"

"It's done." He said sitting on the ground near her. He was exhausted. "At least the approval part…we still have the paperwork left."

"So, how were they?"

"The most part you wrote was correct, and it made my job easier, but…" He placed his head in to his hands.

"That bad?" She said sitting down near him. She was exhausted too, and felt bad for this white-haired Captain. He was doing a job that was meant for at least two captains if not even more. He then turned his head towards her that was still in his hands, so he could see her between his fingers.

"Yeah. But it could've been worse."

"How?" She asked raising a brow.

"Well…I could've been placed in to group with Kenpachi." Rukia was trying not to laugh, captain Kenpachi was still her superior, but she couldn't stop herself. She was laughing out loud, holding her stomach and Toshiro smirked. He made her laugh. He didn't know why that made him happy, but it did. She finally stopped herself, trying to remember who was with her and why she was laughing. Then she wiped the tears and cleared her trout, trying to regain seriousness.

"I am sorry sir." Her voice was still shaken; she was surprising the laughter with all that she had.

"Don't worry, I won't tell him." She smiled. And then he realized it was almost 12 o'clock. "Kuchiki?" He lifted his head and ran his hand trough his white hair, trying to remove few pieces of hair that fell on his face.

"Yes sir?"

"Do you have any work left at your squad?"

"I just need to deliver two packages captain Ukitake left me."

"Then do that and meet me at my office, so we can finish the rest of the paperwork." He said standing up and dusting of his haori. She followed and did the same thing nodding. And then she left with flash step. He was still standing there, near the fence looking in the direction she left, but his thoughts were interrupted.

"Was that lieutenant Kuchiki I just saw?" Female voice, right behind him and a loud one at that matter. When Toshiro turned around he met something familiar that always made him angrier – Matsumoto's bosom! But his head was no longer in them like always and that made him smirk, he was indeed taller now. But soon he remembered that Matsumoto was standing right there, and he hasn't seen her for almost two days…_she hasn't worked at all in those two days_. His expression changed quickly.

"MATSUMOTO!" Vein started pulsating on his forehead.

"What? Did I catch you in almost compromising position?" Her hands were on her hips and a wide grin appeared on her face.

"Matsumoto, where were you?" He was too irritated to even consider answering that stupid question.

"Oh Captain, well…you see… I had work to do." This was bad, she knew that he will be mad, but this was even worse. He was already pissed at her.

"You had work to do?" _SHE HAD WORK TO DO!_

"Yes Captain. You see, Kira, Hisagi and H-" No, he had not needed to hear that man's name, and especially not the name that she was about to say.

"I don't care." He started walking away from her, very quickly. "Just get to work…NOW!"

"Yes sir, right away!" _This went well… too well! Why?_ Matsumoto was confused; she expected he would yell at her for at least an hour and then make sure she would do all the paperwork she missed. And that was if she was lucky, not _this_! But then she decided not to question _this_…_this_ was a good thing for her, so she just walked away to…well, work. Yes, that's the story she's sticking with.

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><p><em>What the hell Toshiro? You can't be doing this again! Just calm down, calm the fucking down!<em> He felt as if something was inside of him, fighting to get out. It kept suffocating him, making him unable to move, to breathe, to do anything else except grant its freedom. "FUCK THIS!" He was leaning on the wall of some building near his quarters, his head pressed on the wall. And when he shouted the last part his hand almost went through the wall. He couldn't even feel the pain, and it sure didn't help. But then he heard a loud gasp. Someone was standing near him, and he didn't even have a need to turn around, the reiatsu said it all. And even if that wasn't there, he already saw a pattern. Every time in the last two days when he would get angry she was there right after that. He felt sorry for the girl. He was acting like a lunatic every time she saw him.

"Kuchiki…" He still wasn't turning around. He said her name trough his teeth, feeling all the anger transit in his voice. It didn't sound as he wanted to, she had nothing to do with this, but it was the best he could offer right now.

"I'll just leave sir." She was about to flash step out of there, but he stopped her. He was right behind her, grabbing her hand.

"No…" _Breathe in…breath out_. "Stay." The last part he said almost whispering. This girl will not see him lose it again. She didn't deserve this, it wasn't her fault. And he didn't need her to be scared of him, which she obviously was.

"O-okay!" He then let her go and walked to that wall again, now sitting. She did the same thing, and sat near him, just like this morning. He wasn't feeling well, she could tell. And if she could help him, she will.

"I'm sorry Kuchiki." He said looking at the clear sky above them. He really needed the company, someone who'll understand, someone who won't judge him.

"For what sir?" The girl looked at him and saw the pain, he was exhausted from it. His eyes were really tired, you could see he had too much of this. If he wanted to stop this, he surely didn't know how.

"For this…You keep finding me…like this." He closed his eyes, trying to regain his serious posture, but it didn't work. He only felt worse. Why does he keep doing this to himself? Momo doesn't care why would he? He hasn't even seen her for the last month, if you don't count that incident from 2 nights before. She clearly doesn't care, why does he keep torturing himself like this? And why did he allow this girl beside him to get hurt? She was hurt because of him. Because of his _stupid anger_. He hurt her.

"I don't mind Captain." Rukia said in a soft tone, looking at the man beside her. Her eyes absorbed all the pain he felt. It was unbearable, even for her, but she didn't show it.

"How can you say that? I attacked you two times now and you say you don't mind? You should be slapping me now, kicking me…something, anything… not act like that." He was now looking at her annoyed. _How can she be calm at this? _And he then saw her… smiling. She was again smiling.

"Captain…you still don't get it, do you?" She was the one now looking at the sky.

"Get what?"

"It won't just go away on its own. It won't just disappear because you say so."

"What won't?" He was getting really confused now. _What is she talking about?_

"The pain. It will stay there until you accept it." She then turned around and met his confused teal eyes that were lighter than usual and had a strange glow. "Until you accept to feel it…it will stay. There's no other way around this, there's no shortcuts or ways to skip it…you have to accept it and then you'll know what to do." The gaze never broke. He kept looking at her, at those violet calm eyes. _What was this girl? She can just read me like an open book and I still don't get her…not even a little._ After a few seconds he came to his senses and began looking at the sky again, Rukia did the same. It was that comfortable silence, just the one they had coming back from that tree yesterday. He liked this silence, but for some reason he had a need to stop it.

"You and I don't seem to finish anything these days." He said with a soft expression. She smiled. It was the truth. The papers were still left unfinished and recruits were still unseated.

"At least we're done with the students."

"Yeah." Her voice was soothing to him. Everything about this girl made him calm. It was weird, but right now he didn't mind. He really needed the peace.

"What was the name of the tragedy?" He was now again looking at her.

"Huh?" Look of confusion appeared on her face when he met her eyes.

"Shakespeare. You said you couldn't understand it…"

"Oh that… It was _Romeo and Juliet_."

"Really?" He was surprised to hear this and she…well, she blushed again.

"Yeah." Still blushing, and now she lowered her look onto ground, her long eyelashes covering her white cheeks.

"What was the part that confused you?" He was really interested now. This girl understood almost everything she saw, what could it be to confuse even her? He really wanted to know. But she wasn't responding, she just kept looking at the ground, blushing. "Well?" And he really wanted to know.

"It was…it was their love sir." She didn't lift her head, and she began to blush even more. This wasn't something she would tell anybody and she just told it to captain Hitsugaya himself. _What the hell are you thinking Rukia?_

_Love?_ Toshiro was in mild shock. _How can she not understand love? She understood the pain, the responsibilities and many more, but… Love? She never felt it? _What was he supposed to say now? He never thought he would bring himself in this situation, let alone try to explain it. _Love. Love? Did he understand it? Did he love Momo? Was that love? Or not? _He then looked at that petite shinigami near him and wondered…_Was she right? Does anyone?_

"Hell, no one can understand that. You just, well… feel it." He was serious now, still looking at her. And she lifted her head to meet his eyes and she smiled, but that smile…it never met her eyes, it was a sad one. Toshiro could see it. It was the first time since he met her that he saw sadness clearly written on her face, in her eyes and it made him angry. He didn't like to see her sad. "But you should read _Hamlet_ or _King Lear_. Especially _King Lear_, it's a really good tragedy."

"Is that the one with the king and three daughters?"

"Yes. Have you read it?"

"No, but I will now." And the sad smile was gone. He felt relief. And still, he was not questioning his action from moments before.

"And now…" He said standing up. "We should get to work." He offered her a hand and she took it, standing up too.

"Yes sir." And then they nodded and flash stepped into his office.

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><p>Toshiro could feel his head dropping on the table. It was near 6pm and he was still writing those stupid papers. He lifted his head to look at Rukia who was sitting at Matsumoto table and saw her writing as well. If she was tired, she sure didn't show it. Since they got in to his office she hasn't said a word. He wasn't sure why, because it wasn't the usual comfortable silence, it was the annoying one. <em>Maybe I did it with that question? Why did I push her to answer? This is stupid, I'll just apologize.<em> He then frowned. _For what exactly? For asking her a simple question? Damn it, why do I even care? I don't even know her…at all! I just need to focus on finishing this paper and don't think about irrelevant stuff._

Rukia could feel his gaze on her, but she was too afraid to lift her head to look at him. She cursed herself in her mind for acting like this. She was somehow afraid of this man, not afraid that he would hurt her, just afraid of his words. And whenever situation went to being uncomfortable, she would blush. She never blushed. Okay, maybe she did when Ishin made those _almost_ vulgar comments about Ichigo and her, but who wouldn't blush at that? She knew this silence was really stupid and she was acting immature, but she couldn't help it. This whole situation was stupid. She had to end this, there's nothing to be embarrassed about, she did nothing wrong. So she took a deep breath and lifted her head, but he was no longer looking at her. It didn't matter, she decided to end this _stupid silence_ and that was it.

"Captain?" Her voice was strong and clear.

"Hm?" He lifted his head to look at her.

"Would you mind if we take a break?" He kept looking at her for few seconds, not sure how to answer.

"I need to stretch my legs anyway." That was all he said, and then stood up, walked to the exit and turned around. "Are you coming Kuchiki?" She was confused. But she immediately stood up and hurried towards him.

When they came out from the office Rukia could feel that cold air on her skin. It was much warmer in the office, so she shivered. It did her good. She was beginning to fall asleep in there. But she didn't really need the sleep, she was just overworked. Those papers were really boring and all similar looking, it got really hard to concentrate, everything kept flying around her, and she wasn't even sure what the hell was she reading for most of the time. This walk was indeed a good idea.

Toshiro was walking beside her, his hands on his back. That comfortable silence was back now and he was grateful for it. It was becoming really hard to concentrate back there in his office. He could see her with the corner of his eye and saw that she was much more relaxed now, he was glad.

They just walked like that for at least 15 minutes, until Toshiro finally decided to sit down. They were near the forest, because 10th division barracks were the last one in line, so it wasn't very hard to get there. He sat below some tall and apparently old tree, his head leaning on it. It was so huge you couldn't even see the top even if you take a few steps back. Rukia sat across him, playing with the edge of her kimono. Toshiro looked at her, he never saw her relaxed like this. They were always in some business so he didn't have the time to even look at her. And when they weren't it was because he made a fool of himself…because of his rage. She was really a modest looking girl, even though she was part of a noble family. Most of the times he met her in real world she was silent, or somewhere in back arguing with that substitute. He never even had a chance to talk to her. Never even had a need to. But now…after everything, he was glad he did. He wasn't sure what would happen to him if she hasn't showed up constantly for the last two days calming him down. He really did respect her now. Still, he wasn't really sure why she did that? She had no reason to help him the way she did! But he also felt guilty. Even though she calmed him, he had hurt her…twice. It wasn't his intent to do that, but…that didn't change the fact that he did. He wanted to say something, make her smile, make her laugh like today, but everything in his mind was a blur. Nothing would even begin to make this better, so he just sat there looking at her. She was really something…something he hasn't seen before. She can be a friend when you need one, the one that said all the right words and gave you enough silence when you need it, then turn around and be a very hardworking lieutenant, and then again she could make you fear her in a second. And all of this was very strange to him. He didn't know what this was exactly. Why was he allowing her to see little past that wall he build long time ago? He wasn't the man who would just give his respect and trust to anybody. He barely knew her. _I don't understand this, do I trust her? Why? I don't even know her. This can't be trust, I must be deranged to think that!_

"Sir?"

"Y-yes Kuchiki?" His thoughts were interrupted now. But he was glad she broke the silence, because those thought kept flying everywhere. He was still looking at her.

"Can I ask you something…personal?" She lifted her head and looked at him. He could see the blush beginning to spread on her face.

"What?" He wasn't sure if he even wanted to know. His face was serious.

"You don't have to respond sir, I just-"

"Ask Kuchiki." Rukia was really embarrassed, he could see it because she was now looking at the ground. She was silent for a few seconds, and then…

"Have you…have you ever felt it?" Still looking at the ground. The words barely slipped her mouth.

"Have I ever felt what Kuchiki?" But he already knew what she was asking. She wasn't responding, she just kept looking at the ground and Toshiro kept looking at her. "You mean…have I ever been in love?" Was he? _Was I?_ She just nodded, but her gaze never left the ground. It wasn't easy for her to ask this, but for some reason she had to. "I…I don't know." And now, he was the one looking at the ground. And he really didn't know the answer to that question. Did he love Momo? Was that love? When she lifted her head she could once again see that sadness on his face. The one she kept seeing these last few days. And now it was her fault, she brought that up. She made him sad.

"I am sorry sir. It wasn't my place to ask you something like this. I apologize sir." She was already on her feet, bowing her head down. _What the hell Rukia? Why did I ask him this? Why did I ask a Captain something like this? What is wrong with me? Damn it!_

"Kuchiki?"

"Sir, I don't know why I asked you this, I-"

"KUCHIKI!" He was trying to make her look at him. And it worked.

"Sir?"

"Sit down." She just nodded and did what he said. Blush was still visible on her face. "It's okay. You don't have to be so formal…and stop apologizing." Again she nodded. Toshiro remembered how sad she was today and he was angry at himself for not being able to answer her. He wanted to ask her, he wanted to know the story behind that thick veil of sadness. The one he just saw for a moment. She was keeping something, buried, closed…_but what, why_? He knew that that wasn't his choice, but still... "Now is my turn."

"Turn?"

"Yes. I believe I am now allowed to ask you something personal." A smirk grew on his face. And Rukia was shocked at this. _What the…?_

"W-what?" Those violet eyes were wide in shock. But he kept his smirk, and continued.

"Well, you should've known…when I allowed you to ask me something that personal that I will want the same opportunity. That is fair, right?" Rukia was silent for few moments, not sure what just happened. Maybe she didn't intent to ask him what she did and maybe it wasn't her place to do that, but still… The man was right; she just gave him the same opportunity. Finally she calmed down.

"Yes. You're right, that is fair. What do you want to know Captain?" He was serious now, took his time observing her, and thought about everything he knew about her. Her posture, her knowledge, her background…it was all too complex. There was no way that he saw everything there is to see about this girl. It would be too simple, too plain. And he knew very well it wasn't his place to ask this, but it bugged him. He couldn't understand this girl, even though she could read him so easily. Maybe he could allow himself this one mistake. This one chance to understand one of the faces Kuchiki Rukia wore. Just maybe…

"Why did you take the position?" And he took it. He knew this wasn't the right thing to do, but he wanted to understand her. It wasn't fair at all…she kept reading him like an open book and kept surprising him ever since that night, he just couldn't predict her movements. He needed to look past that stoic look, to understand that small amount of pain she showed him. He didn't know why, but this girl was very interesting to him. Hell, he spent this whole day with her and never once felt the need to strangle her, and that was a huge thing for Hitsugaya Toshiro.

"What do you mean?"

"The lieutenant seat. You knew Captain Kuchiki will get mad…we all knew. So, why did you take it now?" Rukia was shocked. She never expected this question.

"I…I had to sir."

"Why?" He could see the change in her attitude. Her eyes were no longer in shock and her hands were clenched in fists, her whole body stiffened. That was all it took. He could see it right in front of him. It was only a mask, _a good one_. He wondered for how long she had to wear it. The way she did that, it sure wasn't easy. Now he could clearly see everything she felt, everything…the pain, the anger and determination. Those eyes told him all.

"I had to sir…for them. For my friends and my brother. I was too weak…too weak to take care of myself. I never wanted…" That was really a sight to see. Toshiro was amazed. He never knew that this small girl had that much strength, that much determination. And those eyes… He could not stop looking at them. "I won't let them risk their lives for me…ever again."

Silence. That was all that was left after this. She really let him in. He wanted to see Kuchiki Rukia and she allowed him. She took that mask down and allowed him to see. Toshiro never stopped looking at those eyes, nor did she in his. And that pain…that pain she bare so gracefully under those violet orbs. She really did accept everything that happened. It was something he hasn't seen for a long time.

And Rukia…she wasn't even trying anymore. She had worked very hard not to let anyone see this, not to see her weaknesses and insecurities, but now…she just let go. She didn't know why, but she had a need to show him, to let her guard down and show him. She could not find better explanation than this. If this was anyone else, _anyone else_, she would escape from that question and make sure to close every door so nobody could follow.

"I respect that Kuchiki." He knew he had to break this silence, not to allow her to feel it all at once. So he did. "Although, if you knew how much paperwork you will have to do as a lieutenant, I doubt you would accept it." And that familiar smirk crawled on his face. And she? She laughed…once again. He made her do it again. And still, he hasn't questioned himself... Not once! Toshiro then stood up and started walking. "We should go back lieutenant, we still have much work to do." Maybe not enough, at least not after this.

"Yes we do." And she followed. They were again walking in silence, and Rukia kept looking at the sky. It was night already and the sky was so clear that you could almost see every star on it. She used to love the night, it made her calm, especially when she was in the human world. Every problem, every feeling and every doubt that was on her mind would just disappear. The night would wash it away. Somehow it was like none of that existed when she could watch that dark sky. She could escape, hide and breathe freely. She wished for that feeling again. All the nights after the war were the same here.

* * *

><p>White. That was all you could see. There were no trees, or hills, just white. She assumed it was ice, because it almost looked like it was sparkling, but it wasn't cold. She was barefoot and still, the ground wasn't cold. There were voices everywhere, surrounding her, like someone was whispering, but she couldn't hear what are they actually saying. She couldn't move, not a muscle, but for some reason it all felt familiar, she felt it in the air. Even though this was actually a threatening situation, she wasn't scared. And the voices were closer now, but still unrecognizable. She wanted to speak, to ask them what they want from her, but for some reason she couldn't. Her mouth was dry and her body numb. She wondered how she could even stand, because her whole body wasn't reacting at all. And then she saw her. It was a beautiful sight. The woman was moving so gracefully, you almost thought she was sliding and not actually walking. She knew her.<p>

"The storm is coming." The woman said now closer to her. She was wearing pure white dress and had a long white hair. _She is beautiful like always_, Rukia thought. But the woman was sad for some reason; the expression on her face was really disturbing for Rukia. She felt as something was breaking inside of her just because of that expression. Even the air became heavier and she struggled for her breath like it was the last one. "It always comes." If she could cry, she would have, if she could scream from despair she would have done that too, because seeing this woman sad made Rukia devastated. Still, no voice came from her. She wanted to move, come closer to that white-haired woman and tell her everything will be okay, that she will protect her, but…she just stood there. "Rukia, my child…" The woman stretched her arm towards her and Rukia tried to move, tried to grab her hand, but the white that was surrounding her started to blur, everything started to fade and the woman disappeared.

Rukia woke up to find herself in her bed. She stood up as fast as she could and started struggling for air, and tears kept falling to her cheeks, she could not control them, stop them. It wasn't a dream, not actually, and she knew that. She felt it. She could even feel numbness leaving her body slowly. Everything that happened wasn't really clear to her, but that feeling never left her. That sadness. It kept suffocating her like in the dream. Something wasn't right…she wasn't right. Sode no Shirayuki was warning her, she wouldn't have come if it wasn't something important. First thought that crossed her mind was the war, but she knew that wasn't it. Sode no Shirayuki didn't have that kind of information. It had something to do with Rukia herself, that was something that woman knew very well. _But what? What did I do? I am trying to be stronger, to protect them. I accepted my destiny. What am I doing wrong? How did I make her so sad?_


	3. A Dream Within A Dream

******A/N: **I'm back! Thank you all for your support, I really appreciate it. Whenever I see a review, or that someone placed this story in their Story alert, I can't stop smiling! Don't get me started on favorites...Really, thank you.  
>I named this chapter after a poem by E. A. Poe, because that title suits it really well(too bad I can't write like Edgar). You'll see. And I hope you'll like it! Thanks for reading, I'll be back soon again!<p>

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Bleach!

* * *

><p><strong>Together Alone<strong>

_A Dream Within A Dream_

* * *

><p>He overslept. He actually overslept. Hitsugaya Toshiro overslept.<p>

"Fuck! FUCK!" He almost knocked down the lamp on his night stand trying to get up as quickly as he could. But he got ready in 2 minutes and ran to his office. Luckily, the office was just down the hallway and he just prayed Matsumoto wasn't there; she would never let this go. And of course…she wasn't. _Why would she be? It's not like she actually works here?_ But he felt relief.

He worked till 2am last night. All those papers were due to in three days and he and Rukia tried to do as much as they could. It's no wonder he overslept, he didn't get that much sleep after all. He was in his room around 2:30, but the sleep just wasn't coming even though he was really tired. It was around 4am when he actually fell asleep, but it wasn't much of a sleep anyway. Everything hurt, like he was sleeping on a rock. He was also in a very, very bad mood. Not too much sleep and absent lieutenant will do that to you sometimes. Work will be very hard today. It was already near 8 and he just got into his office. Quickly he searched for his schedule for today and when he saw the first entry he almost slapped himself. He was supposed to meet Kuchiki Rukia an hour ago for recruit's evaluation. _Great, just fucking great!_ At least Matsumoto wasn't screaming in his ear… that would be deadly.

When he got there he could see her standing on the training ground. And she looked…_angry?_ All recruits were in line and impatiens was written on their faces. Toshiro tried to be calm as possible and he was walking very fast, but the truth to be told…he was a little nervous. Rukia was obviously angry at him and he never saw her like that. Well, at least he was never the target of her anger. When she saw him she tried to calm down, but Toshiro could see that that wasn't working very well for her.

"Good morning Captain!" Yes, it wasn't working at all.

"Good morning Kuchiki. I am sorry, I was delayed." Yeah, in his bed. She just kept staring at him, frown on her face. He could see that she didn't get much sleep too. The black circles gave her away. And then she just motioned with her hand towards those recruits and went few steps back. Toshiro sighed and turned around to face them.

An hour and a half later he was already done. Rukia made his job easier by already doing all the evaluation, so he just had to approve. When he turned around to face her, she was leaning against the tree, rubbing her temples.

"Kuchiki?"

"Yes sir?" She said lazily, and didn't even stand up. Toshiro could see that she really did lose her patience waiting for him.

"I'm done."

"Good. Then I guess I should head back." She then stood up and started to walk past him. He dropped his gaze on the ground. He didn't like this, he felt guilty. She was too working very late last night and still managed to come here on time. Just now he saw how much respect that woman had for her superiors. If it was Matsumoto she would yell like crazy…well actually, she wouldn't even wait for him that long.

"Wait!" He tried to say that as casually as he could, but it came out as an order. Rukia turned around.

"Do you still need my assistance with something sir?" She was pissed. If this was anyone else she would smack him down, she wanted to so bad. Just to kick him in that smug face. Rukia wished Ichigo was here, so she can take it out on him…he never mind anyway. But… _He's a Captain! He's a Captain! He's a Captain!_ She kept repeating that in her head, just like a chant.

"There are still papers left. I need to know when to expect you in my office?" It was the truth, they still had a lot of work to do.

"I can be there around three, sir."

"Very well…see you then." Rukia just nodded and continued to walk away.

_Why_ did it bother him to see her like that? He shook his head, to get rid of every thought that crossed his mind and decided to get back to work.

* * *

><p>Every movement of her body made him sweat and the air in his office was too thick to breathe. He couldn't concentrate, couldn't stop staring at her. Her hand moved towards her neck, and she started to rub it, trying to take away the pain of sitting in the same position for an hour. <em>Why am I having these thoughts?<em> He shook his head, but it didn't help. Her skin was flawless. It looked so soft, he was tempted to touch her, to slide his hand from her cheeks towards her neck and… She then lifted her head, obviously aware of his stare. He wasn't even ashamed, he kept his stare focused.

"Sir, is there something wrong?" That voice. It made him shiver. He stood up and moved towards her desk, still looking at her. When he got there he stretched his hand towards her and she took it. When their hands touched he shivered again, it almost felt as he was electrified. She was so soft, so warm. He helped her stand up and then he moved her closer to him, their bodies touched. He started to glide his fingers on her face, trying to memorize every line, every touch. She was beautiful. Violet eyes kept looking at him and she trembled underneath his touch, he liked that. He slid his hand to her neck, his other hand on her back, and moved her even closer. Then he lowered his head… he wanted so bad to kiss her, those pink lips tempted him. When he saw her closing her eyes, he moved even closer and when their lips touched he couldn't stop himself anymore. She let him deepened the kiss, and he lost control. The lust was too strong and the taste of her made him hard. So he moved her and placed her on the desk, her legs wrapped around his waist. She was clenching his hair, and other hand on the desk, trying not to fall down. He moved his hand on her thigh, under her kimono. When he started to kiss her neck he heard her moan and it made him even harder.

"What the hell are you doing to me Rukia?" He whispered in her ear. The smell of her hair, her skin, was intoxicating. "I want you so fucking bad!"

"Oi Captain! Wake up damn it!"

"What the… hell?" When he lifted his head he saw Matsumoto standing in front of his desk. He felt a severe pain in his neck and then realized he fell asleep with his head on the desk.

"I never thought I would find you sleeping in work hours! I see Rukia kept you up late last night, hm Captain?" Matsumoto said grinning. But the only thing he heard was…

_Rukia! It was a dream? I dreamed that?_

"What time is it?" He said, confused, trying not to let all those images play again in his head.

"I don't know…around 2 I think." He just stood up and walked to the door.

"I will be back in an hour. And Matsumoto…"

"Yeah Captain?"

"GET TO WORK!"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah…"

He was almost running true hallway to get to his room. He really needed a cold shower. _What the hell was that about? That dream…and her…and that kiss. Why did I dream that? What is wrong with me?_ He could feel it all again. The way her skin felt, the way her hair smelled and the way she tasted. Images kept replaying itself. He remembered everything… how she trembled under his touch, how she moaned when he kissed her neck. Everything. And those eyes, the way she looked at him, with lust, full of fire. _Damn it Toshiro, what the hell is happening to you?_  
>And there she was, coming. He froze on the spot. He almost made it to his room…almost. But there she is. And the only thing he thought about was that dream. He watched her coming his way, saw the way she danced when she walked, the way her hair moved and he could see those violet eyes and those…<em>lips<em>. Toshiro couldn't move a muscle, he just stood there, looking at her. He started to wonder would it really be like in his dream, would she smell like that, taste like that, moan like that? Right now he wanted so bad to find that out. He wanted to pin her to the wall and taste her again.

"Sir, is there something wrong?" There they are. He almost moaned himself, the heat rushed true his whole body. Those same words, those same lips tempting him to taste them. She was so close.

"CAPTAIN, I'M GOING TO PRACTISE!" The voice behind him helped him snap out of it. He turned his head to find Matsumoto waving him. He just nodded. And then turned around to look at that girl again, his face serious, trying so hard not to lose it.

"Kuchiki…y-you're early." He kept looking at her. _How can she do this to me?_ He was so close to her, so close. Those violet eyes locked with teal ones. Never had he ever felt this strong need, the need to come even closer. He was just a step away.

"No Captain, it's…it's 3 already." Rukia was confused. Teal kept staring at her. Those eyes, those same eyes that helped her take away the pain, they were too dark now. She wasn't really sure what was happening, but the way he looked at her, it made her tremble.

"What?"

"I said it's 3…"

_Damn that Matsumoto! _This is bad; he knew that this is bad. That dream was still fresh in his mind, and she was here… She was right here in front of him. "Let's go then."

"Captain, I can come back later if you want?"

"No!" _What the hell Toshiro? Why did I say no? Just fucking great!_ "Let's go!" He turned around and started walking back to his office. Rukia followed.

When they entered the office, Toshiro tried so hard not to look at her, not to even be near her. He sat down at his desk and buried his head in the paperwork. He couldn't understand why he _all of a sudden_ had that dream. And the fact that she was here right after that made the situation even worse.

"Kuchiki, do you want some tea?" He needed to get out of that room, it was the same air as the one in his dream. He didn't even look at her, he just kept scribbling something.

"No need sir." Rukia could feel the tension, but she didn't know what it was. He was acting strange, she could tell. And she couldn't get that look out of her head. The way he looked at her made her weak in her knees.

"I'll go make some tea." He stood up and hurried to the kitchen. When he got there he opened the faucet and started to wash his face with cold water. _What the hell is she doing to me? I cannot stop thinking about that dream. About her._ Nothing was helping him. The need was too strong, and he wanted so bad to be close to her. _I have got to stop this. She will know something is going on…I can't go in there and-"_

"Sir, are you feeling okay?" Toshiro eyes widened. She was right behind him. He was standing above the kitchen sink and she was _right behind him_. _Damn it! I can't turn around. If I turn around I'll lose it. Damn it! Damn it Toshiro!_

"I'm okay Kuchiki…go back to work!" It took all of his strength to say that.

"Okay!" She left. She left and still he could feel her, feel her reiatsu. But she left, and he had to calm down. _I'm going crazy! I cannot let her see me like this._ He took a deep breath and washed his face again and the back of his neck.

When he got back from the kitchen with the tea he saw her on the floor near the pile of paperwork they had to do. She was going true that papers, apparently trying to find something she needed. She didn't even look at him.

"Sir, do you know where are the papers from B section? I cannot seem to find them." Still sitting on the floor. He walked to his table and left the plate with tea on it.

"Yeah, they're here on my desk." He took the small pile and she stood up. _Gods, she is beautiful. Damn it, stop this Toshiro, just fucking stop! _ Dusting of her kimono she walked to his desk.

_There it is again, that look. Why am I feeling like this because of a simple look?_ She was now in front of him, and when she looked at those eyes she sighed and literally froze. His eyes lured her in, and the tension was unbearable.

Toshiro heard that. It made him want her even more. The mere fact that she was aware of that attraction between them was heaven to him. She was so close. _No, no… NO! Snap out of it!_ Luckily, Rukia broke the gaze and looked at the ground and that brought him back!

"Here…" She took them and went back to her desk.

It was three hours later that he actually allowed himself to lift his head. He looked at her and saw she was writing something.

"Kuchiki?" He wanted to see violet again.

"Yes Captain?" And there they are.

"I think we should take a break."

"Okay!" He then stood up and started to walk to the door and she followed.

"The walk?" He asked looking at her.

"Sure."

But the silence didn't change. It was still that comfortable silence Toshiro loved. He liked that he can relax with her and not even try. Made him forget about the work and every other problem he had to deal with. It was that simple. He worked very hard to avoid thinking about that dream. It was crazy. Yes, he was with her for the last few days, but still…_out of a sudden to dream something like that_? He couldn't understand it.

"Sir?" But the silence didn't last long.

"Yes Kuchiki?" They were walking near the forest again and the sun was still up...barely. Toshiro could see the girl with the corner of his eye.

"I wanted to apologize." She was looking at the ground, ashamed. And he couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"For what?" He was now looking at her.

"For this morning." He froze on the spot, and she stopped too.

"Wait, what?"

"Sir, the way I was acting this morning…I was-"

"Wait, wait, wait! I was an hour late and YOU want to apologize?" He just couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"No sir. You have a right to do that, but me… I was acting very childish. The anger got the best of me. I apologize." She was still looking at the ground, blushing from embarrassment.

"I don't want to hear apologizes Kuchiki. You did nothing wrong. I am the one that needs to-"

"No sir, it was-" She looked up to meet his eyes.

"Do not say that! I don't want to hear about this ever again, are we clear?" His eyes softened. The way he said the last part it didn't even sound as an order.

"Yes sir." A small smile was visible on her face. And Toshiro _almost_ smiled back. _This girl is unbelievable. How can she do this to me? What is this? She just…_

"Kuchiki?"

"Yes?"

"It's your turn now?" He said walking away from her to that huge tree and sitting again in the same way.

"My turn?" Rukia followed and sat across him.

"Yes…the personal question?" He was again looking at her, smirking. She was nervous.

"Oh…okay!" Rukia began to play with the edges of her kimono. "But sir…are you sure? What if I ask you something inappropriate? I don't want to-"

"So you already know the question?" Rukia looked up at him in wonder. His smirk winded.

"Umm… yes, but-"

"Ask!" She was really struggling and Toshiro already knew what she will ask him.

"Okay…" She took a deep breath and was silent for few seconds, trying to gather her strength and courage to ask him what she wanted to know. "W-what made you so…so sad sir?" Her eyes were full of worry he could see that, and his expression softened. This girl really cared.

His answer was simple and his voice didn't give anything away. It was as he was stating something that didn't affect him at all.

"Momo Hinamori." He never changed that soft expression, not after he saw more worry in girl's eyes. _She really cares._ And she didn't move a muscle; she just kept looking at him with those eyes. When he saw that look deepened he continued. "I grew up with her…and with my grandmother. We were friends for as long as I can remember. And after that thing with…" It took him a few seconds to say the name. "…with Aizen, she changed. And she pushed me away. Maybe I…maybe we wanted something different." He was still looking at her, but Rukia saw how sadness filled his eyes. She understood everything now. They were like that for almost a minute, looking at each other, until Rukia broke the silence once again…

"Your turn sir." She said with a soft smile. She wasn't afraid of the questions anymore. Toshiro nodded.

"I guess it is…" _Was now the time?_ He knew already what he wanted to ask her, but he wasn't sure was that the right thing to do. He didn't move, but he was feeling nervous for some reason. Finally he decided to ask. "Do you think…" This was a very hard thing to ask, even for him. It was something he wasn't sure about. He kept thinking about it, putting all puzzles together. Something didn't fit there, but he wasn't sure. It was really bugging him. He was really careful with this girl, because she wasn't easy to read. Well, she was, but only when she allowed you to. He didn't like that. "Do you think you love him?" Rukia stopped moving for few moments. That question was unexpected. _How did he... _

"I… don't know." That hurt him, for some reason. It was strange, the way that affected him. She was looking at the ground, but before her eyes left his he could see the sadness again. _That is why she asked me that first question. That is why she even read that book._ He didn't have the words left. He couldn't even speak if he had one. That sad look on her face tore him from inside. Maybe the time is come _to question_ himself. Maybe he ignored it for too long. She didn't move and he never stopped looking at her, leaning against that old tree. _How could…how could he hurt her like this? How could he not see…the way she looked at him?_ This girl, this petite shinigami…she was something Toshiro never met in his life. _How could he be so fucking stupid? That damn substitute…_

* * *

><p>There it is again. Why does this keep happening to her? Why did she come here again?<p>

White. That woman. And now…the storm.

"Rukia…"

"Sode no Shirayuki?" She could barely see her from the storm. It was cold now and wind brought snow with him. "How can I help you? Did I do this to you? How?"

"Rukia, my child… Your heart, your soul…" She placed her hand on her chest as she said the last part. The woman moved as graceful as ever, but that look was still on her face. Rukia almost thought that Sode no Shirayuki will cry. "That is why this storm came."

And that was it, she was back in her bed again. This time the feeling was even worse. It made her want to cry, but she fought it. _My heart? My soul? I made that storm? I made Sode no Shirayuki sad? It's my fault! _It hurt so much. She never wanted this for that woman. She was with her from the beginning, the only one that believed in her when no one did. And she brought her this much pain… that woman never deserved this. When she was about to be executed that woman was her only company…she kept whispering to her, saying that Rukia was stronger than that, that she can pass even this. Sode no Shirayuki was her only real friend, her only companion and she…she made her sad. She made herself sad.

Rukia looked at the clock and saw it was almost 5am. She got up, put on her kimono and left her room. She will become stronger, for herself. If she is safe, Sode no Shirayuki is safe.

When she got to the training ground she saw a familiar face. He stopped his training to look at her. His expression was welcoming her and she felt relieved. Those eyes made everything fade away.

"Kuchiki…again with the trainings?" They weren't ignoring each other anymore. She smiled, walking towards him.

"Yes Captain, I have to." He nodded.

"Then let me see what you've got."

"What?" Ruikas eyes winded.

"Tsk! Don't make me repeat myself…you always do that." He smirked and took a fighting stance. She did the same with a smile on her face.

Two hours later she was tired as hell. He didn't even get to shikai and she already tried everything to at least scratch him, but nothing.

"Not bad Kuchiki."

"Not bad? I couldn't even come near you and for most of the time you haven't even moved." She was angry. No, she was pissed. She was mad at herself. _How the hell did he dodge everything?_

Toshiro smirked. There it is again, that other Kuchiki. _Maybe…just maybe…if I push a bit more…_

"Well…next time try!" _3, 2, 1…_

"WHAT? I DID! I can't even stand on my feet anymore and you tell me to TRY NEXT TIME! WHAT?" He did it, he actually did it. She was pissed. He wanted to laugh, but he knew that would make this situation even worse. This was enough… for now. His smirk winded. Rukia felt exhausted, so she just sat on ground breathing heavily. He sat across her, still smirking and studying her changing expressions. When she fought fatigue away she realized that she actually just yelled at a Captain.

"Sir?" Blush came to her checks.

"Yes Kuchiki?" This was so much fun for him.

"I am sorry…I was out of a line." But before he could answer…

"Oh Shiro-chan, Rukia! I've been searching for you." The vein on his forehead was back. He just hated that name. Rukia was already on her feet bowing her head down.

"Captain Ukitake, you're back!" A smile spread on her face. Toshiro stood up and just nodded.

"Yes, I just came home. What are you doing here so early?" Ukitake had a small grin on his face and watched the two carefully.

"We were training." Toshiro said, dusting of his haori. He was serious again, with that frown on his face.

"Oh, I see…" Ukitake just kept his grin on and turned around to Rukia. "Rukia, did you help Shiro-chan with the evaluation?"

"Yes Captain, but we still didn't finish the paperwork." Rukia said, looking at the ground.

"Oh Rukia, please don't be so formal. You will finish it, I am sure." The man was kind as always. His voice would always calm her down. "But that is not why I came here… There is a mission-" But before he could finish the sentence hell butterfly came. It was heading towards Toshiro and landed on his hand. Toshiro was carefully watching the little thing and after almost a minute nodded and butterfly flew away.

"I see." Toshiro first looked at Rukia and then at Captain Ukitake. "Then we will see each other in the meeting." Nodded and walked away. Rukia was confused. Apparently only she didn't know about that supposed mission and quickly she turned around from watching the back of Hitsugaya Toshiro, to face her Captain. Before she could even ask anything he started talking.

"Yes, that is why I came to find you. There is a mission and you too been called." Rukia was worried. Why would she be called on a mission together _with a Captain_? Missions with captains were very serious and dangerous. Captains of Gotei 13 rarely left Seretei, and when they did it was because of something very serious. Sure, she was honored, but still…curious. But Ukitake smiled gently after he saw the look on her face. "Don't worry Rukia, it is only the cleaning mission. You'll do just great!" Cleaning missions were constant, especially after that war, but even though they were frequent, nobody took them lightly. You had to be a seated officer or higher to be called…and it had one Captain that always came with them. That Captain was the white-haired prodigy Hitsugaya Toshiro. Captain-Commander Yamamoto gave him this responsibility because of his many visits of human world. Basically, cleaning mission consisted of cleaning a certain area that has been highly populated by Hollows. But this "area" was Karakura town for the last two years. This was their third cleaning mission in the last year there. It's been told that in every 100 years there is a certain place in human world that has more energy and higher reiatsu flow that the rest. It was Karakura town, no doubt about it. It was Rukia's first time to be called on this kind of missions as a lieutenant.

"Thank you Captain." She said with a small smile. Still, she wondered… was it too soon for her to go to this kind of mission, but then she remembered her dream. _No, I can do this. We can do this. I will show Sode no Shirayuki that I am much stronger than this. I will stop her sorrow, I will…stop the storm!_ If she only knew…

* * *

><p>It was 2pm and Toshiro just got back to his office. The Cleaning squad will have a meeting there in an hour. The list was not a long one, but it sure was interesting. He would have a handful job with them. Just keeping them in order would be a job on its own. Each time the names would change, except for Matsumoto who was obligated to go as his lieutenant, so every time he had to organize it all over again. Only one thing bothered him and that was the last name on that list, but he decided not let it get to his nerves much, he will handle it somehow. He sat on his chair and decided to assemble some kind of a schedule for them, if he doesn't do that this whole mission will be a mess. He wasn't new at this, on the contrary, he knew his job very well, but still… it wasn't an easy job in a first place. Just staying for two weeks in human world is very hard thing to do for him; he still hasn't enjoyed it at all. Eating their weird food and forcing himself to stupid small talks with humans was really getting on his nerves. Especially the clothes… he really hated that. His kimono and haori were very comfortable and he hated the fact that he wasn't allowed to wear it, well at least not when in Gigai.<p>

Their destination was Karakura town, like always. That hasn't changed for a while, and he knew it wouldn't…at least not for a few more years. Hollows sure liked that town and their constant population of it hasn't changed at all since the war. First he thought there would be less of them, since Aizen was defeated, but that wasn't the case. They were still attracted by the town's mass reiatsu flow and the shinigami that were on duty there were not skilled to take that many of them. Especially not when Menos decided to join the party. So, Toshiro was often called to clean the area. It didn't do much, because they would come again, but it was the only thing they were able to do.

"Oi Captain, are we going again?" Matsumoto asked coming in the office. She was slightly bruised and had cuts on her uniform.

"What the hell happened to you?" Toshiro looked up with confusion.

"Oh this? Nothing, the training got a little out of control. But I got them good Captain!" She was grinning, her hands placed on her hips. "So, are we going or what?"

"Yes. We've been called again. The meeting will start soon, so go and change." He said continuing to write something on the papers in front of him, already bored with her story.

"Who's coming this time?" She completely ignored his order. Matsumoto, unlike her Captain, enjoyed this kind of missions. In fact, she loved all kinds of missions. The paperwork was boring, she didn't sign up for that. And it gave her an excuse to leave Seretei, and have fun in human world. She loved the fact that different people came with them every time, it was exciting to her.

"The list is on your table." Toshiro said, motioning with his hand towards her table and getting back to work. He was used to her constant ignoring and most of the time he didn't even care, as long as she did her paperwork. Even though he would never admit it, he deeply respected Matsumoto. Her spirit was admirable and so was her battle experience. And after everything she had gone through, he admired her strength. He knew she was suffering, Gin was after all her friend, but she never gave anyone the reason to worry about her, and that was something he respected deeply. That was something he failed to do for the last couple of days. He cursed himself in his mind for not showing more strength, he was really acting like a weak child, which he no longer wished to be, or ever was in fact. Toshiro remembered Rukia's words from few days ago and once again reminded himself that she was indeed perceptive. _Believe me when I say it…you can walk like this for a long time, but…but when you explode…Whatever it is, let it go. Forgive and let go. _He did in fact explode. This was not his usual behavior. He felt weak… he was weak. Ever since the war he could see his resolve being shattered in small irreparable pieces, day after day. Maybe he pushed himself too hard; maybe he ignored many things when he should not have. Everything seemed complicated; nothing was as it were once.

"Oh Captain, this is going to be fun!" Matsumoto exclaimed, holding the piece of paper in her hands, obviously excited.

"Matsumoto…" He was holding the bridge of his nose now, annoyed at her behavior. "This is a mission, not some mindless game with sake. It's not supposed to be fun."

"Tsk, Captain… you're too stiff for your own good. You should relax a little, have fun!" It was always like this. She really wanted for him to relax a bit, take time to enjoy things while he still can. Nothing seemed so important to dwell on to her. "There…" Flashing that list before his eyes and pointing a finger on it. "She will be going too." Evil grin appeared on her face. She loved to tease him.

When Toshiro saw the name she was pointing on he became more annoyed, almost angry. This made him uncomfortable.

"Matsumoto…" A sigh! "I thought I told you to go and change, the meeting will start very soon!"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah…" She left the piece of paper on his desk and started walking to exit, waving her hand in a mocking way. He was really impossible sometimes.

When she left Toshiro took the paper and started reading the names again. The list was indeed interesting, maybe too much interesting. He wondered if someone was playing with him, wanting to make his life more complicated than it already was, because this is going to be very… _stressful_. He shifted his concentration back to the schedule on his table, he really needed to finish it before the meeting.

* * *

><p>"Hey guys!"<p>

"Hey Matsumoto, are you coming with us?" The bald man asked, turning around to face her.

"Of course Ikkaku, wouldn't miss it no matter what! It's going to be fun!" She said trying to catch them, so they can all walk together to the meeting.

"But not very beautiful. I heard there are many Menos again." Blue-haired man said, stopping to wait for her, cleaning some imaginary dust of his kimono,

"I believe this time we will have more at our hand than just Gilians. We should really hurry."

"Oh Hisagi, you worry too much! It will be alright." Matsumoto said placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Yeah, we'll slice them on the spot!" Ikkaku said, almost shouting. He was seriously excited for this mission. After the war it all became boring, not much to do and not many bad guys to fight, at least not the ones worth mentioning. This will satisfy him for a bit.

"Is that lieutenant Kuchiki?" Hisagi asked looking at the petite shinigami that was coming their way.

"Yeah, she's been called to!" Matsumoto said and then turned around and started waiving at her. "RUKIA! COME ON, HURRY! DON'T WANNA BE LATE!"

"Damn it Matsumoto, I almost lost my hearing!" Ikkaku said placing a hand on his ear. "Leave the girl alone, we have 15 more minutes."

"Hello lieutenant Kuchiki!"

"Please Hisagi, call me Rukia. I told you already that you don't need to be formal around me." Rukia said with a smile looking at the black-haired lieutenant that was standing in front of her. A small smile was visible on Hisagis face and he just nodded.

"Let's go people, Captain Hitsugaya will nag if we get there late!" Matsumoto said starting to walk to his office. Everyone nodded and followed. They all knew Captain Hitsugaya could be a pain in the ass if they get there even a minute late. Especially when there's a mission involved…then, he would become even worse. So they hurried to his office, everyone in a deep thought, probably wondering what is waiting for them in human world.

"I see everyone is here." They all sat on the couch, looking at Toshiro. "Good. We need to hurry, there's not much time left. First-"

"But Captain…"

"What is it now Matsumoto?"

"Aside from you, there's only five of us here, shouldn't we-"

"The last person on the list will be joining us later, if that is what you wanted to ask." Matsumoto nodded. Toshiro was now in a worse mood when he remembered who that last person was. The others just kept looking at the two in confusion. "Don't interrupt me anymore…that goes for the rest of you too." Yes, he was getting angrier by seconds. Rukia was silent, looking at him, still confused.  
>"First thing, we will find accommodation when we get there, because I haven't had enough time to organize and think about that. Second, you must all be wondering why we have two lieutenants on the team now, instead of only Matsumoto like always." Everyone just nodded again, except Yumichika. He was busy checking the condition of his nails. "Lieutenant Hisagi and lieutenant Kuchiki have been called because this mission is very serious and more dangerous than the last ones. Apparently, we have to deal not only with mere hollows, but with Menos too, and we still don't know their level. Lieutenant Kuchiki…"<br>He stopped for a second to look at her, he hasn't done that since she entered the room, and then continued. "…has been called especially since her battle experience with Menos is on higher level than the rest of you. She has information that we don't, so she'll be of great value… And lieutenant Hisagi…well, I don't even need to explain that."  
>The rest of them just nodded again, what else can they do? "We will leave tomorrow, so wait for me near Senkaimon at 9am! Questions? No? Then you are free to go." They all stood up and walked out of his office, except for Matsumoto who remained on the couch, smiling. Toshiro ignored her and continued to work on the team schedule.<p> 


	4. Old Bonds, New Bonds

**A/N: **New chapter is here! Thank you all for reading this, reviewing and everything!

I took some time to correct material I already have and I'll be doing that again, so the next chapter will be up probably next week. Probably... Sometimes I go crazy and finish everything sooner, so don't be surprised if I update tomorrow. But I really need to restrain myself and take some time to reread the story and work on it more. So, here is the new chapter! I hope you like it! And once again, thank you for your support!

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Bleach!

* * *

><p><strong>Together Alone<strong>

_Old Bonds, New Bonds_

* * *

><p>Something was not right. She was not right. Sode no Shirayuki came for a reason, she gave her a reason, but why! <em>I tried everything. I stood up for myself, and I did everything I wanted. And every morning I went to practice, to be stronger. Why does she keep coming back? What am I doing wrong?<em> She woke up in the middle of the night, sweaty, in her bed. Her breathing was heavy and she had that feeling again. The dream was lost, the only thing she could remember was the face of Sode no Shirayuki and that's it. Again, the woman was sad and she could feel it right now. It all felt like a nightmare, the pain felt like an affect of her dream, but she knew deep down that it was real. The pain, the struggle… everything she felt was real, the only problem was the fact that she never gave it enough space to develop, and she never wanted to think about that, so it made the feeling even worse. She tried to lie down and sleep, she even tried to read something, to eat, to write the paperwork, but nothing helped. Nothing! And the feeling became worse…she was trapped in it, the air in her room became stale, she couldn't breathe. Paranoia literally consumed her, she needed to get out, leave the room, and breathe again. She grabbed her sword and ran out of the room, it felt too small for her, and it was as the walls could speak…they all blamed her, blamed her for the pain, storm and cowardice.

When she stopped she was confused. She was near that pond, apparently flash stepped there, but… that feeling only grew stronger. She could not breathe. Why? The night was cold, the air was too. But no, breath stood in her throat, and anger took her over. The burden of that pain was too strong for any normal person, it took her down, and she wanted out…she needed to get out!

"WHY?" Was all she said, or rather yelled, her voice traveling to the surroundings, and the night became aware of her state. She was angry and lost, the feeling needed to come out. Rukia then fell to her knees, breathing heavily. It all made her feel even worse, anger was rage now and she began to hit the ground in clear despair. She could feel it, the relief, all that anger was coming out, and it felt great. She stopped after few minutes, tired of the same action. Tired of all crap she bottled up from years and years before, tired from people telling her what to do, tired from her constant in this world…tired. She just remained like that, her eyes closed, head bowed down. She was broken, nothing made sense. The night was eating her in despair. So it was easier to stay like that, at least she allowed herself to feel.

"Kuchiki…" The voice was soft, understanding, and she knew whom it belong. She never looked up, never moved. Rukia remained broken, on the ground; she never felt the need to stop herself from accepting this how it was…defeat.

"Yes Captain?" Was all she said, almost whispering, and Toshiro could hear the despair in her soft, small voice. He felt her reiatsu from the moment she became like this, so he decided to be there for her like she was for him. It was the right thing to do. But he never thought she was this…_sad?_ _No, it's more…_ So he just walked to her and sat down near, his shoulder almost touching hers. He remained silent, looking at the stars. But Rukia never looked up. That felt weird for him. He tried to be quiet, to put himself in her position, to understand that it was important, but the pressure was too strong.

"Are you okay?" He really almost slapped himself for this. Stupid question. But what else could he ask. If he asked her _what is it_ or _will she talk to him about it_…no.

"The feeling… it's too much!" He turned to look at her, almost surprised of her answer.

"What…feeling?" Never once did she look up, but Toshiro remained his gaze on her.

"I-I don't know, but…it's suffocating me. It's making her sad!"

"Her?"

"Sode no Shirayuki." It was barely a whisper; it sounded as she lost the will to speak. Toshiro was now really surprised at her answer. He knew that _Sode no Shirayuki was her sword, but what it had to do with that feeling…the feeling she did not know what it was and…This is complicated._ But she was sad and lost and it felt weird to him…he was almost used at seeing her strong, seeing her guide him not other way around. But there she was. It was hard to see her like that and not know how to help her, but he had to…

"Whatever it is Kuchiki…you can beat it. I know you can!" She immediately looked up to meet his eyes and was surprised to see him understand. It wasn't the look of pity or indifference…it was understanding. And he just kept looking at her. Those violet orbs were full of sorrow, lost, hurt. He knew that they were the only way to see her. Those eyes always told him all. "Don't misunderstand yourself for a weakling. You are not such thing." He believed in every word he said. "At least I never mistook you for someone that runs away. If you can't understand it, then just feel it. Until you accept to feel it, it will stay…you told me that. And I believe you were right." She smiled. It was a weak smile, but Toshiro's heart skipped a beat at this. He could do it. The same thing she did to him, calm him down and make him feel better…he had the same affect to her. That connection was obvious the moment they spoke.

"Thank you Captain…for believing in me." Toshiro just looked at her. Why did he care this much? This girl was a stranger to him. _But she was also someone that withstood my anger and even… Why am I like this? _"But this…" He could see the despair creeping in her eyes. She was weakened, tired, lost? _No, it's something else. I know that… that's…_

"Stop right there Kuchiki! Don't think you are even allowed to fight it alone."

"W-what?" This confused her. His eyes were determined, but she didn't understand why, or what she is supposed to fight.

"Solitude." There it is. He could see it, as clear as the day they sat under that large tree. He was right, she felt alone, and Toshiro knew that feeling very well. "I won't let you…" And he never thought he would even consider doing this, but… his hand met hers and he just let it be.

Rukia was surprised at his action, better yet shocked. Captain Hitsugaya was actually holding her hand. And it calmed her down, the _feeling_ slowly faded...just went away. The only thing she felt right now was the ice. His hand was sending chills through her whole body. She didn't even blush from embarrassment, she didn't even twitch…nothing, just kept looking at the teal beside her.

"C-Captain Hitsugaya…how did you-"

"Know?" He smirked. The history and its cycles were a funny little thing. You could see a small smile on Rukia too for realizing what just happened, but it faded away quickly. "I know that feeling Kuchiki, very well…" _Why am I telling her this? This girl…_ But the being of _this girl_ was more important than his ice shield right now, he knew that. He took a deep breath and continued. "You thought me something very important the other day and now…I'm going to return the favor." The grip on her hand tightened. "Even if you didn't realize…you gained a friend." Rukia was amazed, shocked… NO! Scratch everything; the words could not express how she felt. This man…this man right in front of her gave her a light. She had friends before and even now, but this… She was _friends with Hitsugaya Toshiro_.

"What?" _That couldn't be right, my hearing is messed up._ Toshiro smirked at this. She almost always reacted with pure honesty, he already knew that.

"What _what_?" He said it almost mockingly, but she didn't notice. Rukia was still contemplating the last thing that happened.

"Friends…why? I don't…"

"Kuchiki, I do not take something like that lightly." When he saw the look of confusion was still on her face he continued. "What you did for me…that other day and every day after that… and we barely knew each other. It told me a lot about you, and I will not take it for granted."

"Thank you sir." She smiled again, but it didn't go away. She was really grateful; this meant a lot for her, especially in this moment. Rukia just now realized he was actually right. That feeling, the one that's been suffocating her all along, has been loneliness. She ignored it, ever since the end of that war, kept it in her, bottled, but…Sode no Shirayuki knew, she felt it. It was suffocating her, so it was just the matter of time this would happen. And that hand, that cold hand, never left her. They remained like that, for a few moments, just looking at each other, and then turned their gaze to the night sky. Toshiro couldn't let go, the hand gave him the comfort and peace.

* * *

><p>"Hisagi, you need to relax! You know what…I'll take you to few clubs in human world when we get there. Oh, you have to see all kinds of drinks they have! You can pick any color! Green, red, blue, purp-"<p>

"MATSUMOTO!" When they all turned to the voice, the only thing they could see was a pissed of Captain coming towards Senkaimon. Hisagi was really embarrassed, but Matsumoto kept her naughty grin on. "This is a mission." His voice cold now.

"Oh Captain, you don't know how to have fun!" Even though she was smiling, she meant it. Matsumoto was always worried for her Captain, for the burden he carried, for every bad thing he had to endure and because of it he was always like this…serious, cold, detached. Toshiro just looked at her with a frown and shook his head.

"We don't have much time, let's go!" They all just nodded, ignoring the incident, and went through.

They appeared in Urahara shop, owner already in front of them waiting, smiling. Rukia was excited, there was no point in hiding it. She will see Ichigo and others again, and it was a long time since their departure. She really missed _them_.

"Oh hello my friends." Urahara Kisuke said, slightly bowing, with his green fan open. The tone of his words was almost mocking, but they were all used to it.

"Urahara…" Toshiro said, in acknowledgment of his previous greeting. And after few words of welcome from both sides, and getting in their Gigai, he continued. "We need to go. The final member of cleaning squad is awaiting us and we need to start working." With that they all just followed him. Rukia was confused. Why did that white-haired Captain waited so long to reveal the last member was beyond her. She couldn't understand why that was so important that it kept bugging him. She was following the rest of them to the exit of the shop, absent in her thoughts, but the voice that she heard then brought her back into reality.

"Oi midget!" Carrot top said waiting for them in front of Urahara shop with wide grin on his face. He was really happy to see her, it's been too long. "I see you haven't gowned at all. That's too bad, because-" BAM! That was the only sound they could hear. Nobody called Rukia a midget and got away without at least few bruises. "OW, WHAT THE HELL MIDGET?" And the action repeated. It was the second time he called her a midget and it was the second time he got kicked in his face…with her foot.

"That's the last time Strawberry…One more and it will hurt even more." Rukia said, placing her foot on his chest grinning, one finger pointed at him in warning. "Nice to see you haven't changed at all." Ichigo was on the ground looking at her, slightly angry because of the way she greeted him, but he knew the moment he spoke it would be like this. It always was. He was glad; he missed her. She was away for too long, not once came back to greet him, not once tried to connect with him. But he understood. She was no longer a shinigami responsible for their town, there was no need for her to come back unless she was ordered. That was the way Soul Society worked. He had no right to protest or to get angry.

"Kuchiki…" When she turned around she met a cold face of Captain Hitsugaya, but you could see he was not pleased to see this. She quickly let go of Ichigo and bowed to white-haired Captain. Ichigo stood up and shot a confused glair at Toshiro. It took him few seconds to recognize the Captain that was standing near him. There was no sign of a boy he once knew.

"Sorry Captain." Was all she said. And to be honest, Toshiro was amused when she kicked that substitute in face…twice, but the mere interaction between the two bothered him.

"It's fine. We need to get going. Matsumoto?" Toshiro turned around to see if she was still there. Nothing was certain with his lieutenant. She could've escaped from boredom to find her own entertainment. And he knew what kind of an entertainment would that be, and that would mean she would became useless for at least two days, lying drunk somewhere. He was revealed to find her standing behind him.

"Yes Captain, I've contacted Orihime and she will be waiting for us in her apartment." Matsumoto said with a heavy breath that she let out at the end. This was too much of a bother to her.

"Good. Now…" Toshiro again turned around to face Ichigo with frown visible on his features. Ichigo returned the expression. "This mission is very serious and dangerous at that matter, I expect you will take it as that."

"Of course I will." Ichigo was confused at this. Was this man questioning his power? Toshiro nodded.

"Good. And now, we need to go!" Ikkaku, Hisagi and Yumichika remained quiet at all of this, not really sure what just happened, and started following the rest after a few exchanged looks. Rukia pulled Ichigo to snap him out of whatever he was in, and they started walking with the rest, waving of Urahara that remained in front of his shop, with naughty grin that he hid behind his fan.  
>The walk to Orihime's apartment was not a quiet one, as Toshiro expected. He was now sorry for even being in this stupid Gigai, he couldn't even flash step away from them. Ikkaku, Yumichika and Matsumoto kept babbling about clothes, drinks, women and everything else human world offered; Hisagi was quiet, and as Toshiro observed he was looking at the two beside him talking. And the two of them just wouldn't <em>shut the fuck up<em>! Rukia was asking all kind of question about the rest of the friends she had here and Ichigo was more than happy to respond. After few sentences that were quite normal, they would get in to an argument and Rukia would shove him or kicked his hand, and the orange top would laugh and the circle would continue. She was indeed different around him. The smile would show itself more, and she was relaxed, Toshiro could tell that. He talked to her for few days now, but the smile, the sincere one, only showed itself two times. He remembered the night he asked her that question and frowned even more. This all bugged him. This was a mission and he was acting irresponsible. He needs to calm down and start thinking about everything that they would need to face tonight and every night after this one. He thanked the gods for seeing Orihime's apartment before him and hurried forward, he could not stand a second more of this. At least now, when they get in, all of them would shut up and he could do his job.

"Kuchiki-san, you're back!" Orihime ran towards them smiling, she was happy to see petite raven-head girl. "I thought you forgot about us."

"That's silly Inoue, how could I!" Rukia looked at the girl, soft smile on her face. She was really beautiful, her hair was longer and she had a sincere smile on her face, so different from the last time she saw her. The way that girl just shook everything of her back and returned to normal was pretty amazing to Rukia.

"You cut your hair? You look very pretty like that Kuchiki-san." When she said that Ichigo turned to look at Rukia, realizing that she indeed did. He could see something was different, but he missed the hair part.

"Thank you Inoue, I had to…it was getting hard to work with the longer one." She said messing up her short hair with her hand and smiled gently. She loved that Orihime always noticed every little detail. And she was her only true female friend, so she always liked getting compliments from her.

Toshiro looked at them with the corner of his eye. Rukia really knew this people very well, and they all respected her, he could see why. But this was not the time for happy reunion, so after letting a few more moments pass, he finally spoke.

"Inoue, we appreciate your hospitality, but we should really get to work now." Orihime looked at him and started laughing like crazy; she did that often when she would get nervous. And this white-haired man, she barely recognized at first, was making her really nervous. She wanted to ask him about his haircut too and about the obvious growth, but she decided not to, _he would probably smack her _or something like that. She never really understood how Matsumoto could be that relaxed around him, because she personally would always be aware of his power and position and that frightened her…a lot.

"Oh don't mention it. Please, come in." And they all did. Orihime's apartment was slightly changed, as Rukia could see. The curtains, carpet and a color of the walls were new, but it didn't differ much from the original. They all walked in and sat on the sofa and few chairs Orihime brought and placed near the small living room table in the middle. Matsumoto then dumped the papers she brought from Soul Society on it and that earned her a glare from her Captain that was standing in front of her, ignoring the empty seat obviously reserved for him. Hisagi and Rukia were sitting on the sofa, while Ichigo was leaning on the wall across them, his hands in his pockets. The other two, Yumichika and Ikkaku, were sitting on the chairs obviously bored at this.

"Are you hungry? I just made some food? And tea? Would you like some tea?" Orihime was still nervous, she really liked having people over, or well, shinigami. Whatever they were, they were company. But when everyone heard her offer a food the expressions on their faces changed to disgust.

"Tea is fine. Thank you." That saved them. Hitsugaya Toshiro never left a space for her to repeat her offer, and they were all grateful. And with that Orihime went to the kitchen. But even Matsumoto noticed the air around her Captain was colder than usual, he was more…_stiff_.

"Now…" Toshiro said taking few of the papers from the table. "Let us go through group and motion plan. I need to split us in functioning groups, so we can-"

"Oi! Would anyone care to tell me what the hell are we supposed to do? What the hell am I supposed to do?" Everyone, except Toshiro whose gaze never left those papers, looked at the substitute shinigami. Some, like Ikkaku and Matsumoto, were amused at the fact he just interrupted tenth division Captain, but the others, like Rukia, were furious at this action. He could clearly see her hands clutching in fists, a smirk grew on Ichigo face. He missed that anger, fire and rage in her eyes. But Toshiro remained cold, never even looking at him.

"Your job." Was all he said, and that made Ichigo pissed. He would have shoved him in the wall if Rukia hadn't shot him a death glare. "And do not interrupt me again, is that clear?" Yes, the bad mood was obvious now. Even Rukia looked confused. The man was never a cheerful person, and they were all used to his authority, but the air was heavy around Toshiro today.

"Whatever."

"As I was saying…" He now ignored Ichigo completely. "…we need to split in groups. Although the groups are obvious already, I will read 'em." Rukia could swear he looked at her at that moment, but it was so quick she might've imagined it. Then he started reading through the list. "Ikkaku and Yumichika, you will be going on this route." He said giving bald man a paper. You could see a change in the bold mans behavior. The grin took over his face after he was reminded that they would get to fight. Toshiro switched his gaze to Rukia and took out another piece of paper. "Hisagi and Kuchiki, this one is yours." Rukia froze for a moment. _Obvious? What the hell is obvious here?_ She thought she will be going with Ichigo, not lieutenant Hisagi, and the way Hitsugaya said the groups were obvious that confirmed her hopes, but this… "Is there something wrong lieutenant Kuchiki?" She then realized she was staring at Captain Hitsugaya with her mouth slightly open.

"No, no! Thank you sir!" And took the paper from his hand. It didn't matter, she was here to do her job, and she could talk to others as soon as she finishes her duties. But Toshiro saw the confusion written on her face.

"Matsumoto will be going with me, and Kurosaki…" Now he was looking at the boy who was still leaning on the wall, obviously mad, but acting as this hasn't affected him the slightest. "You will go with your team here." Ichigo took the paper, anger clearly evaporated from his features. He was confused. Luckily, Orihime walked in the room and sat a tray on the small table, and when everyone turned to look at her, it gave Ichigo enough time to at least put himself together.

"My team?"

"Yes. Your team. You didn't think we only called you to do this?"

"You mean, Chad, Inoue and Ishida?"

Toshiro pinched the bridge of his nose, obviously irritated at this question. "Yes Kurosaki, _that_ team." With that he sat on the empty seat, placed the rest of the papers on the table, and took his cup of tea. "You are free to go. The mission starts tonight, so call the rest of them and meet us here at 8 sharp."

"Alright." Ichigo folded the paper and looked at Orihime who was just staring at him, not really sure what just happened. "Inoue, we should go to school, and tell the others." She quickly nodded and turned her gaze to Rukia.

"Kuchiki-san, are you coming with us? The others would be very happy to see you. Keigo even wrote you a poem!" Ichigo too turned to look at the raven-haired girl sitting on the sofa. But Rukia was speechless. Was she supposed to go with them? She wasn't alone on her mission anymore.

"No. We will _all_ stay here." That answered it. Matsumoto turned to look at him confused.

"O-okay Hitsugaya-san. Make yourself comfortable." She nodded and left the apartment. Ichigo left quickly after her, but first he made sure too shot a glare at Rukia, feeling betrayed, but Rukia returned it, not really in the mood for his immature behavior.

"But Captain, I wanted to go shopping. Why do we have to stay here all the time, its still morning?" Matsumoto on the other hand had her reasons to protest. Ikkaku, Yumichika and Hisagi all looked at her, almost nodding in agreement, but they knew better than that. Rukia was looking at Toshiro, who seemed tired and he kept looking at his cup for few seconds before returning her gaze. She could almost see pleading in his eyes, but before she could read it better he broke the gaze and looked at Matsumoto.

"Do as you please, just stay in group and be here on time." Yes, even his voice was tired. This was a lot of work, _they_ were a lot of work, and Rukia felt sorry. She herself questioned his orders, not loudly but still…

"GREAT! LET'S GO!" Shouting, Matsumoto stood up and so did the rest of the guys. The yelling could be heard from hallways, they were excided. Rukia remained sitting there, her hands on her legs, looking at the cup in front of her.

"You can go too if you want." The voice was now much softer. He was looking at her, and their eyes locked as soon as she lifted her head.

"And you?" She almost whispered.

"What about me Kuchiki?" Toshiro said broking the gaze and took a sip of his tea. "I'm not going to go shopping with Matsumoto, I'm not suicidal." Rukia laughed quietly, now looking at her hands. When he heard that he smiled in his cup.

"I'll stay here…if you don't mind?"

"If that's what you want…" The long breath that he unknowingly held in his trout was let out. The air was easier around them now and Rukia saw his features relax. His hands were crossed and he was leaning on his chair, head up, looking at the ceiling. His chest rose slowly because of the breathing and the black shirt on his Gigai was hugging them well. Relaxed.

"Captain?" Rukia was now playing with the edges of tea cup with her finger.

"Hm?" Never even moved.

"I apologize for my behavior this morning. Ichigo tends to bring it out of me." Now he moved. That name made him, so he straighten himself up, his hands still crossed, and his eyes rested on the girl. She was wearing yellow dress and Toshiro's eyes flickered to her legs, but he quickly shook his head trying to remain serious.

"You forget who my lieutenant is." Rukia looked up and saw a smirk on his face. "No need to apologize." Rukia smiled at this. Matsumoto really brought Hitsugaya's rage often.

"But there is Captain." He looked confused at this response.

"And why is that Kuchiki?"

"This mission Captain…and us... Every single person in this group is different and we can be…." She paused for a moment, as if trying to find right words. "…difficult. I understand how hard it is for you to maintain order, and I was not helping at all." Then she smiled softly. "And I'm supposed to be helping you. That's what friends do." Toshiro almost jumped at the word _friends_. She was indeed his friend, and he was hers, he told her that. And it felt nice to hear it once again.

"I believe you're right Kuchiki." Smirk was now in full control of his face. "I'll then accept your apology." The girl nodded once agreeing to his words and was completely drawn in teal eyes. She liked those eyes, made her at peace…most of the time at least. But the next thing woke her. "Let's go!" And with that he stood up and went to the door.

"W-where?" Toshiro turned around to look at her, one hand on half-open door.

"To eat. Unless you want to try that weird stuff that Inoue made?" He raised one eyebrow as challenging her.

"No, no, no…I'm coming with you!" And quickly she was beside him, leaving the apartment. It was still morning and air was fresh, but it all looked as it was going to be a hot day. The wind that was blowing was getting warmer and Rukia saw a frown forming on Toshiro's face. They were walking on sidewalk, his hands were in pockets and when Rukia looked up to see his face she realized something.

"Captain, can I ask you something?" He turned his head to look at her.

"Is it something personal like last time Kuchiki? You know the rules. If you-"

"No, no, no!" Rukia was feeling uncomfortable now. She took a second to think, putting her finger on her chin. "At least I don't think it is."

"I'll determine that." He said smirking. He was amused at her behavior. "Ask."

"Well…I was wondering…I mean-"

"Just ask Kuchiki!" He almost shouted, but not really angry. Either way, she twitched a little and asked almost immediately.

"When…when did you grow?"

"What?"

"Well, you are taller than me now…" She said quietly, almost afraid of his response.

"Wasn't I always?" He said with a smirk on his face, almost teasing her.

"No!" She sounded as a child when she said that, angry and offended. But the anger disappeared, because Toshiro stopped right in front of her. She almost jumped at this. When she lifted her head, she met his teal eyes looking at her. They were close…too close. If he would lower his head just a little bit their noses would touch. She was just looking at him, eyes widened, not really sure what made him stop out of the sudden.

"Well…" He said in a husky voice that made Rukia shiver, and that didn't go unnoticed by white haired man. "I am now." And with that he slowly turned around and started walking again. It took Rukia few seconds and a few deep breaths to put herself back together before she followed him, not really sure what just happened. But Toshiro just walked away, smirking. He wanted to make her angry, but apparently that didn't work and he could see why. When she caught up on him and started walking beside him, there was a visible blush on her face. But Toshiro didn't notice, he was too busy thinking. After few minutes Rukia finally spoke.

"There!" He looked at her and saw that she was pointing a finger at something, so he followed it across the street and saw a small restaurant. It was in glass, few white curtains visible on the inside and in front of it were brown chairs and tables surrounded by pots of white flowers. Beside every table was a white large umbrella that casted a deep shade, and the whole structure was retracted a bit from sidewalk, so the dust from streets couldn't get to it. "Orihime and I went there once. The food was really good." Toshiro just nodded and they crossed the street.

They were soon sitting, looking at the menu waiter brought for them. Table was made of glass almost completely, except for legs that were brown and it had small white tablecloth that had brown patterns on it, that matched the legs and chairs. Toshiro liked the shade those umbrellas casted. It was at least few degrees cooler. Rukia was looking at the breakfast specials and saw pancakes. The moment she saw it, she placed the menu back on the table smiling. Toshiro looked at her, obviously confused at all the meals that were on there.

"What? You already decided?" He said, raising one eyebrow.

"Yes. I'll have pancakes." She said happily. "I had those last time and they were delicious."

"Really?" He was amused how excided she became.

"Yeah! You can pick what you want to put on them. Last time I ate ones with honey, but I think I'm going to try with chocolate this time." She was happy as a child with a new toy. Toshiro could see how relaxed she became around him and he was glad. Not too many people did get like that when he was around. They were all few steps away, almost afraid. Except Matsumoto, but she was a whole different story. And this girl really grew on him. He could almost be himself around her…almost. He knew many people longer that this, but they were reserved, not like this…like her.

"Then I'll have the same as you." He said placing his menu on the glass table. She smiled and nodded. She waved to their waiter and opened the menu again. When he came she ordered two portions of pancakes pointing a finger on the menu, and she was talking a bit differently, almost acting out the pleasantness in her voice. She thanked the waiter and turned around to face him again. Toshiro took that time to observe her. He had seen her act this way few times before the war. He never liked that polite tone that took over her voice…it was fake. It wasn't out of respect, like the way she would address her Captain, it was just fake. He assumed she had a lot of practice with Kuchiki clan. Toshiro never liked them; they were too stiff, even for his taste. But she broke his thoughts quickly.

"Oh Captain, I forgot to tell you…" Her voice trailing off. "I read the book."

"The book?" Toshiro was leaning on his chair with his arms crossed. Rukia assumed that that was his usual way of sitting.

"Yes, _King Lear_."

"Oh…" He almost forgot about that and didn't even think she would read it. "And, what do you think?"

"It was really interesting reading. I liked the way Shakespeare portrayed the characters and the whole plot was really intelligently written. And the character of King Lear was really thoughtfully written. The way his blindness of everything but passion…and not even real passion, just dramatic behavior, sealed his fate… And the way the two daughters, Regan and…"

"Goneril." Toshiro said listening to her every word.

"Yes, Regan and Goneril. The way they spoke passionate words that they did not mean, only for their purposes, the way that hunger for power ruled them… really well written. Even though it was a tragedy, I liked it."

"I'm glad." He really was. He never even thought she would read it, and on top of that she understood it and liked it. In that moment waiter came and placed two plates of pancakes in front of them. They thanked them and started eating.

* * *

><p>An hour later they were back in Orihime's apartment. It was some past eleven and Rukia already felt tired. She was up most of the last night, but everything that happened with Hitsugaya made her sleep come easily after that. So all in all, she slept 2 hours tops, because she had to wake up really, really early. This mission was very important to her. Toshiro went to take a shower and she lied on the sofa <em>just to close <em>her_ eyes for a little bit_. When he came back he found her asleep on it. Her yellow dress was pulled on her thighs and Toshiro once again found himself staring. The memories of his dream came along quickly. He was really acting like a pervert, staring at innocent girl that fell asleep, but he couldn't help it. Her skin was beautiful. It looked soft and sleek. He loved the way her shorter hair reveled her neck and her face more. Her long eyelashes rested on the cheeks and it made her look very peaceful. And when he lowered his gaze to her lips he felt something flicker in his stomach. Those pink lips were now partly open and whenever he looked at them, they were calling for a touch. It was too much for him. When he finally gained control of himself, he shook his head and went to get a blanked for her. He stopped in Orihime's bedroom and leaned his head on her closet, breathing heavily. Toshiro was not a stupid, or oblivious man, he knew he was attracted to this girl. He wanted it to stop, but there were so many reasons why should it continue. Everything about her was calling him. And he saw the way she reacted every time he came close. That day in his office, right after his dream, he was standing right in front of her and she didn't take a step back. And today on the street…today it took all of his will power to turn around. _But_… he didn't even know the girl. And _the burdens they carried_… Everything about their lives was complicated. That made him thought about Momo and his body automatically filled itself with rage. He, almost unconsciously, hit the wall with his hand, the rage just kept coming back. But it was not directed to Momo, the rage he felt was because of his actions. He was glad now that Momo didn't show up the last few days, he would've regretted it.

"Captain Hitsugaya?" He could hear her voice from living room.

_Fuck! I fucking knew she was asleep! What's wrong with me?_ The punch woke her up.

"Yes Kuchiki?" He tried to sound as calm as he could. The footsteps.

"Are you okay?" Her hair was messy from sleep and one strap of her dress slid of her shoulder.

"Yeah…Didn't mean to wake you. I was just coming to get you a blanket." He said softly looking at the floor. He thought that he was really getting toilsome with these rage attacks.

"Don't worry about it Captain. I didn't really mean to fall asleep anyway." The way she leaned on the bedroom door, smiling, with that messy hair and tired look on her face almost made him smile. She was too gentle towards him. But he replaced the _almost smile_ with frown.

"Tsk! You should go back to sleep, we have a long night before us." His hands crossed. It was his usual Hitsugaya Toshiro stance.

"I think I'm just going to make some coffee." She turned around and tried to adjust her hair with her fingers. "Would you like some Captain?" She asked over the shoulder. Before he could even utter a word they heard a door slam.

"Oi Rukia! Where the hell are you?"

"Kuchiki-san, we brought company!" They could hear the two almost yelling from hallway. _Fuck_ was the word that crossed Toshiro's mind. Why? No reason…no reason at all. Rukia left the bedroom quickly and went to the hallway. There were four people standing there. Ichigo was scratching his head from annoyance, while Orihime had her hands up in the air from excitement. Next to them were Ishida and Chad. Ishida had a small, barely visible, smile on his face, while you could clearly see Chad smiling.

"Kuchiki-san, glad to see you're doing well!" Ishida said, pulling his glasses up the nose.

"Ishida, Chad… I'm glad to see you too!" Chad just nodded. In that moment Toshiro decided to enter the room behind Rukia. Ichigo and Ishida were a little surprised. Ichigo then looked at Rukia and noticed her hair and one strap of her dress and frowned. Toshiro saw it, but decided to ignore him, even though he was glad he annoyed that substitute.

"I see you gathered your team Kurosaki." He spoke more to annoy him, because there was no other purpose in stating the obvious. Toshiro never said something without any need. Rukia turned around and moved a little so white-haired man can pass.

"His team?" Ishida said calmly. "I'm not part of _his team_. I only came here to greet Kuchiki-san." Chad was acting indifferent to this. If he was indeed a part of Ichigo's team it didn't bothered him at all. Orihime just looked confused.

"Wait…aren't you all supposed to be in school?" Rukia said after looking at the clock in Orihime's apartment. "It's not even 1 o'clock." Ichigo finally let go of his frown and looked at her again.

"Oh, that…Well, we-"

"We skipped class!" Chad spoke for the first time.

"Actually, I didn't skip class. I asked the teacher to let me go early, so-" Ishida said proudly, adjusting his glasses.

"Yeah, yeah…whatever." Ichigo said while walking to the sofa and sitting down. And Ishida only seemed more annoyed. The others sat on the chairs that were still there, around the coffee table, while Toshiro stood on the same spot with his arms crossed, Rukia right beside him. "Where are the others?" Orange-top asked.

"I think they went shopping with Matsumoto or something like that. Anyway, I was going to make some coffee, would anyone want some?" Rukia asked looking at every person individually. Only Inoue refused, and with that she left the room. Toshiro moved to the table and took few papers that Matsumoto so _gently_ placed there, and sat on the chair looking busy. He was really not in the mood for this group right now. His own was far than enough. He only prayed the gods that they come back in time, or else he would have to kill them, and he already had a lot of work to do. The others seemed to ignore him pretty quickly, especially when Rukia came back in the room with coffee. That was the only time he lifted his head, to take his cup and to mutter a low _thank you_ to her. And the rest of the group was really happy to see Rukia back. Chad really respected her, and Ishida liked that she would smack Ichigo from time to time.

"So Kuchiki-san, what is this mission actually about?" The Quincy asked taking the cup from Orihime's small table.

"We were all called to participate in the Cleaning squad." She said rubbing her eyes. _Captain Hitsugaya was right; I really do need to get some sleep._

"Cleaning squad?" Orihime asked looking at her and then at the white-haired Captain who seemed uninterested in the flow of their conversation.

"Yes. After the war there was a higher hollow activity in Karakura town, so Captain-Commander formed the Cleaning squad. Every time different shinigami were called, but the Captain whose duty is to lead them is Captain Hitsugaya himself." Toshiro still hasn't lifted his head, not even after the mention of his name. He was listening to her, but decided it was better to not include himself in this. And everyone else just kept looking at Rukia, even Ichigo, who apparently wasn't really sure why they called him. "And this is the first time I was called. Probably because of my rank…" She said distracted by her own thoughts.

"Rank?" Ichigo asked surprised. "What rank Rukia, you're unseated!" Toshiro smirked at this, still "working". _Prepare yourself Kurosaki!_ The words from Ichigo's mouth broke her strain of thought and she looked up to him grinning.

"I never told you, did I?" Everyone was confused to a point they blankly stared at her. "I'm a lieutenant now!" She really loved to repeat it. Chad and Ishida just smiled and muttered a _congratulation_. Orihime screamed.

"Oh Kuchiki-san, I'm so happy to hear this! Congratulation! You really deserved it!" Her hands were flying everywhere. And Ichigo? It took him few seconds to put himself back together. It's not that he didn't believe Rukia could become a lieutenant, he was just surprised.

"Didn't think they allowed midgets to become lieutenants!" Ichigo said smirking. It was his way of acknowledging it, but all Rukia heard was _midget_. The look on her face was priceless. Her brows went in to a frown, and her mouth crooked, hands clenched in fists. It was the time Toshiro looked at her, not really moving, just looking up, under his eyebrows, cup of coffee in one hand and in other the paper he was "reading". His expression said he was interested on how she will react. When Rukia felt that he was looking at her, she remembered her talk with the Captain and in that moment their eyes met for a second. He didn't look away, nor did he move. He just kept his gaze steady. She then took a deep breath and relaxed. She ignored Ichigo completely and started talking again.

"Anyway… The Cleaning squad is here again, with two lieutenants and of course lieutenant Rangiku, but she always comes. The rank of a current team is higher than usual." She really did ignore him. Toshiro smirked returning to his papers and Ichigo just looked at her confused and then at the man beside her. Rukia never, not once, ignored a remark on her height. Something was different about her, he could see.

"Why is it higher than usual?" Quincy asked placing his cup back on the table.

"Menos." Toshiro spoke, finally. He never looked at them, but Rukia automatically looked at him, it seemed as if his participation in this was a reward for her previous behavior.

"Menos? Here? That's unusual." Quincy said looking worried. Ichigo remained silent.

"Hence the squad." Toshiro said.

"The mission is going to begin tonight." Rukia said after a few seconds of silence in the room. "We are supposed to meet here at 8!"

"Alright, then we better get back home and prepare." Ishida said getting up. "Kurosaki, are you coming?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah…whatever." And he got up too, and started walking to the exit, but before he left he shot a confused glare at Rukia. She felt guilty. It was as he expected of her to react the way she always did, and she failed him. But this was a mission and she wasn't going to jeopardize it. Captain Hitsugaya was her friend too, and she wasn't going to make his job harder because of a _stupid bickering_ she and Ichigo did all the time. _What was the point in it anyway?_ Even though she hasn't realized it, that was the first step.


	5. One Step That Changed Everything

**A/N: **And I'm back with new chapter. This one will really complicate everything. Will it be a good thing? We'll see...  
>Thank you for your wonderful words and your support! I am really happy you like this story. Just that we share the same love(or in my case obsession) towards HitsuRuki makes me squeal! I hope you like this chapter and...we'll see each other soon(I really failed in restraining myself, this update should have come later)! And again, thank you for reading this!<p>

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Bleach!

* * *

><p><strong>Together Alone<strong>

_One Step That Changed Everything_

* * *

><p>"MATSUMOTO! GET OUT OF THERE ALREADY!"<p>

"Woman can't even take showers these days!" She said to herself, in bathroom, putting on her shinigami clothes. "I'M COMING, I'M COMING!"

Toshiro and the rest of the Cleaning Squad were in Orihime's apartment waiting only for Matsumoto to get ready. Even Ichigo and his team were there on time. Rukia was sitting on the floor, near the exit door, obviously out of the patience. It was almost 8:30 and Matsumoto was in the bathroom for the last hour. Ikkaku was sleeping on the sofa, his head on Orihime's shoulder, who was sitting next to him, and she was blushing from that contact, but didn't say a word. And he didn't even wake up due to shouting that happened few moments ago. It wasn't the first time Toshiro yelled this evening anyway, so the bald shinigami got used to it. The tension could be cut with knife, and almost everyone, even Yumichika, were aware of it. This whole mission needed to be done very quickly, because having Menos in Karakura town was not really a great thing. Mere hollows were very dangerous, and the effect of Menos walking, or whatever they were capable of, around this town was very disturbing and had to be dealt with quickly. In the mission description Toshiro got only two weeks to finish this, but he knew… the sooner they're done, the better.

"Geez, you really need to work on your patience Captain!" Matsumoto said entering the living room. "Here, I'm ready!"

"Let's go!" Toshiro said, not in the mood to start fighting with his lieutenant. In a few seconds they were all in front of Orihime's building, including Ikkaku who was rubbing his swollen eyes. They stood in front of white-haired Captain waiting for orders. Only Ichigo was evidently annoyed at something, while others were just eager to start this. Toshiro looked at them and frowned.

"You all know your team comrades and route, so only thing I need to tell you now is to be careful and in case of emergence use the cell phones you got. Now go!" They all went their ways in the matter of seconds, some excited like Ikkaku, others annoyed like Ichigo, but they all went their ways.

* * *

><p>Rukia and Hisagi haven't used flash step, because it was their first time fighting together, so they didn't knew fighting techniques of other and they weren't really sure what to do. So, they had to move fast, because of the destination distance and the reiatsu that was popping up and disappearing every few seconds. Everyone in Cleaning squad got a destination they were responsible for. It wasn't a one place thing, they literally got one part of a town they had to clean and it wasn't an easy thing to even pass trough, let alone clean it.<p>

"What on earth is happening here?" Rukia asked not really anyone, maybe just herself.

"No clue. I can't even decipher that reiatsu, it keeps disappearing!" Hisagi said as they jumped from one rooftop to another. "We should find one destination point and wait until it's stabilized."

"I agree! If we keep chasing it, it won't show up any time soon." Reiatsu was really so low and kept disappearing that they weren't even able to point its destination.

"There!" Hisagi pointed at the park that was semi-lit. Rukia nodded and they went to the pointed destination. Rukia was calming her breathing while Hisagi sat on the bench and placed his hands to his knees, obviously trying to catch a breath too. "We should've flash stepped." He said looking all over the park, as trying to see if anyone is there too. It was still early, so someone could be there. But on his surprise, the park was empty.

"Where is everyone?" As if reading his mind Rukia asked.

"I was just wondering that." He said with a soft frown. "It's not even 9; there should be people here, right?"

"Yeah, weird." She said looking around. "Anyway, what's the plan?"

"Well, if they really are Menos, we still don't know what level. All that Captain Hitsugaya said was that we should clean the area and that research team got around 20 locations that were supposedly highly populated by that reiatsu."

"That means we should concentrate on finding them ourselves, because our route is pretty wide."

"Yeah, that should be easy." He said sarcastically. "But yes, that's our only choice."

"Great!" She said tiredly. "This will be one long night."

* * *

><p>"…and then I wanted to see the rest of it, but Ikkaku was already pissed, so they dragged me home."<p>

"MATSUMOTO! FOCUS!"

"Oh come on Captain, relax! We might not even get to fight tonight."

"That's not a reason to not pay attention!" They were on the roof of some old building, watching the small part of the area they got. In front of them was an old reconstruction area. The temperature was really going downhill, but that didn't bother Hitsugaya. In fact, it was the only reason he had even one shred of patience left. Matsumoto was babbling since the moment they flash stepped on there, and she was really killing his focus. He wasn't really sure if the owner of that reiatsu was scared of them, or was just teasing them, waiting for them to follow him and fall in trap. It could be anything really. Toshiro wasn't even sure of the level of intelligence those things possessed. They weren't an Espada level, but they were still pretty strong. Strong enough that Captain-Commander sent three lieutenants and one very strong substitute to take care of it. _If this woman would shut up just for one second…_

"Anyway, I saw you today!" And that was the reason for him to stop paying any attention at all to the reiatsu that was disappearing all the time. She had that naughty grin on her face. He knew that grin and it was never a good thing…at least not for him. Not that he cared Matsumoto saw him, it was because she saw _them_, and he was sure he didn't want her to start teasing him. But that was inevitably coming, he was sure. If he was going to ignore obvious attraction towards that one girl and focus on staying what they already were – friends, then this wasn't helping at all. He thought about that the whole day, even when they had breakfast, and decided it was all pointless. She had her strings and he had his. They were better like this. At least like this he would get to talk to her, and he wasn't going to destroy that. He ignored Matsumoto and remained still starring in the sight before him, as if he didn't hear her. But, she knew better. His composure was too stiff, she saw the way he started to clench his hands and the way he forcefully made his body to relax, or at least try.  
>"You were at that restaurant." She stated the obvious, just to let him know that she in fact did see him...them. Toshiro was trying really hard to remain still, to ignore her, not to snap. And Matsumoto only became more determined.<br>"I didn't know you had a thing for Kuchiki girl, Captain!" _Bingo!_ That did it! She could clearly see annoyance on his face. Matsumoto didn't actually know they spent time together, or that what she said was actually...well, true. She only saw them together once or twice. She remembered that they were together on the training ground that day in Soul Society. The only thing she knew was that this could be her new weapon in teasing her Captain, that was for sure.

"I think I told you to remain focused." He said calmly, but it was too late now to act indifferent to this.

"What? So you do?"

"MATSUMOTO!" Yes, too late! She ignored his yelling like usual, and continued.

"That's great Captain, I mean I think you would make a cute couple! She is short too, so-"

"WE'RE JUST FRIENDS!"_ Fuck!_ A mistake, big mistake and he knew it, but it was too late to repair the mess he just made. He wanted to kick himself. This was a very bad thing, he knew his lieutenant. Even if it wasn't anything important she would make sure to get the best of it…just to torture him. Matsumoto was really surprised at this. It froze her in her tracks. _Friends? When did they become friends? _This was becoming more serious than just what she had planned, so she decided to let it go…for now. And the distraction came in the right time.

"CAPTAIN, A HOLLOW!"

* * *

><p>"KUROSAKI, SLOW DOWN!" They were trying to catch up with him, but even though he didn't use flash step he sure was quick. Ishida was yelling, trying not to use hirenkyaku, because they were not alone. Orihime and Chad would never catch them like that, but this did it. He appeared in front of Ichigo and stopped him in spot. The two remaining continued to get to them.<p>

"WHAT THE HELL ISHIDA?" The orange boy was really pissed.

"Stop it Kurosaki! Inoue and Chad can't run that fast. I can see you have some unresolved issues, but don't let it jeopardize this mission…or them."

"Unresolved issues? What the hell are you talking about? And this mission is important to me too, why is everyone questioning my resolve?"

"I really don't care, as long as you put yourself together." Ishida said. They were both focused in the battle of strongest frown, or at least that was the way it looked for anyone else.

"Kurosaki-kun… is everything okay?" Orihime and Chad finally arrived. They were trying to catch their breath. When he heard _her voice_ and saw their arrival, Ishida stepped back allowing Ichigo to start walking again…to win.

"Yeah, let's go!" Ichigo said not even looking at the two. They all started walking, allowing him to go few steps ahead. While Ishida was mad and Chad slightly confused, Orihime kept staring in the back of an orange-headed man in front of her. She knew something wasn't right ever since this afternoon, but what…she wasn't really sure of that. Ever since Rukia was gone he was closed in his own world, never letting anyone even close. Before she was really trying to get to him, in her own way, but after Rukia left she saw that that wasn't happening anytime soon. Even though she cared about her, this all made Orihime very angry. The raven-head girl had him in the palm of her hand and she wasn't even trying. Why did Rukia get a chance or a privilege, however you looked at it, to get to see his world, and she was cast far away…forgotten! There wasn't much left in her world, in her life…and Kurosaki Ichigo was part of those pieces she saved barely. But her strain of thoughts was interrupted quickly…

"I can sense hollow reiatsu in that direction, we better hurry!" Ishida almost yelled.

* * *

><p>"That's a fifth one, but I still don't see Menos!" Hisagi said getting back on the ground after he killed the last hollow on their radar. It was near 1 o'clock and five hollows were all they got so far. Even though that was a small number from what they expected, all of the hollows were stronger than usual, and it took them more time than they expected.<p>

"And all of the threatening reiatsu is gone now." Rukia said as a follow up to his sentence. They were indeed tired, but they were prepared to face more if needed. "AND so far, I'm winning!" That she said with a huge grin on her face. They made it into a contest, after Hisagi said 'It's 1:0 for me!' She actually found out that he was a fun guy to hang around, even though he did piss her of after that bold statement that he would definitely win.

"Don't get ahead of yourself Kuchiki Rukia, I still have time left!" He said smirking.

"Maybe, but there's no reiatsu of anything you can slay nearby." She said crossing her arms grinning. And he knew she was right. All of the disappearing reiatsu they chased disappeared for good.

"Tomorrow then… we continue with this score! But now I think it's time to head back, there's no point in staying here." And with that they started walking to Orihime's apartment. The night was really a cold one, it looked as it was going to snow. They had good 45 minutes to said apartment.

"I think we should flash step, this will take forever!"

"Race ya?" And with that he was gone. Rukia stood clueless for few seconds and then flash stepped herself, trying to catch up with lieutenant that just left. After only few minutes she was already behind him, but...

"Too slow Kuchiki, too slow!"

"This doesn't count, you left with no warning!" They were in front of Orihime's building. Hisagi was grinning due to his victory and Rukia was standing in front of him with her hands on her hips.

"No warning? I know for a fact I asked you to race me and you followed." He said calmly, and that pissed her of more. "Just admit you lost."

"I DID NOT!" He was laughing and she stood there frowning with her hands clenched in fists.

"What on earth is going on here?" When they turned around they could see white-haired Captain approaching with his lieutenant. She had a cut on her face that was still bleeding slightly.

"Nothing!" They said in tune. Toshiro frowned looking at the two before him, but was pleased to see they could at least function together and none of them got hurt. And at least the first night was over and his lieutenant was quiet for awhile now… _that's a change_.

"Lieutenant Rangiku, are you okay?" Rukia asked concerned, looking at her wound.

"This?" Matsumoto asked casually pointing at her face. "Oh it's nothing, just stupid Menos!"

"Menos?" Hisagi asked surprised.

"This is not the time or place to discuss this. Let's go upstairs." Hitsugaya said calmly walking past them. They all followed, climbing stairs that led in to Orihime's apartment.

When they got up the apartment was empty. There was no sign of Orihime or others. Matsumoto went to the bathroom to clean her wound, while others worked on getting into their Gigai. After that and Hisagi making a tea, they all sat in living room to exchange information they recovered their first night.

"Report?" Toshiro asked motioning towards the two that were placing their cups back on table. Rukia looked at Hisagi and he nodded as if allowing her to talk.

"There's not much to report Captain. Five hollows, stronger one at that matter, and strange reiatsu that was disappearing whole night was everything we discovered. Although we tried to follow the said reiatsu it was impossible, it kept escaping or disappearing every time we came near." She said looking at teal-eyed Captain that was already forming a frown on his face.

"Yes, well…" He said lowering his gaze to the table in front of him. "I believe we found that reiatsu. That, or another one like it." Hisagi and Rukia were still looking at him intrigued. He continued. "First we encountered few minor hollows, but after we defeated them Menos appeared. And they were Adjuchas level. We defeated all three of them, and that's how Matsumoto got cut." He motioned towards his lieutenant that was already sleeping on Orihime's sofa.

"Adjuchas? What are they doing here?" Hisagi asked looking at Toshiro.

"I really don't know, but we have to search the area tomorrow again…and we have to wait for others to return. We'll know more then, I hope." They nodded and sat silent for few minutes, obviously thinking about what happened. But Rukia broke the silence…

"Oh, I just remembered… Did anyone make sleeping arrangements?" That _anyone_ was supposed to be Hitsugaya Toshiro.

"I suppose we can't all fit in here, or can we?" Hisagi asked looking around the room. Orihime's apartment was a smaller one, but it still had some space. Before Toshiro could answer the door opened. It was Ichigo and others. They were all fine, no one got injured as far as Rukia could tell.

"Ichigo!" She said calmly. "Is everyone okay?"

"Yeah…" He said scratching his head. "We're fine." And they all sat around the table, except Chad who remained standing near them.

"So…?" Hitsugaya said after few moments of silence. Ishida began to speak, so everyone turned to look at him.

"Well, there were only three hollows, which we killed-"

"You mean which I killed." Ichigo interrupted him.

"Well, if you would stop running for a second, maybe I would get a chance to get near." The Quincy said, annoyed.

"The point is I defeated them by myself." Ichigo said crossing his arms and grinning.

"If I wasn't there, you wouldn't even sense them." Ishida said angry.

"The hell I wouldn't! I sensed them the moment you did and-"

"THAT'S ENOUGH!" It was Rukia who lost her patience. "Both of you stop it!" She said more calmly, trying to regain her composure. Orihime, who was sitting, almost jumped at this. Toshiro, Ichigo and Ishida looked at Rukia in wonder, while Matsumoto only snored once. It seems Toshiro yelled enough around her for her to get used to it. And after Rukia took a deep breath she continued. "So, what are you actually trying to say is that you only saw three hollows and that's it, right?"

"Yeah." Ichigo said scratching his head again.

"It seems we'll have to wait for Ikkaku and Yumichika. Maybe they'll be able to tell us more." Toshiro said crossing his hands in thought.

"Yeah, they're not coming!" Ichigo said looking bored. Rukia turned around to look at him, her eyes widening and Toshiro did the same.

"What?" Toshiro asked. Again, Ishida spoke.

"We met them half an hour ago and they said they will be sleeping at Keigo's apartment. They told us to tell you they'll be here first thing in the morning."

"Did they tell you anything about their route?" Toshiro asked annoyed at his comrades.

"Just that they didn't find anything interesting." Ishida said.

"But knowing Ikkaku, we can't really know anything for sure. It depends on what he finds interesting." Hisagi said looking serious. Toshiro took few seconds to calm himself and then he nodded slightly, more to himself.

"I suppose this is it for tonight." He said getting up. "Get your stuff. We should leave Inoue to rest. We already took too much of her space." Everyone just looked at him surprised.

"Oh it's not a problem really!" Orihime said waving her hands defensively.

"Wait…Leave where?" Hisagi asked surprised.

"You should get home Kurosaki. And the rest of you too, we still have long way until this mission is completed." Toshiro said, ignoring black-haired lieutenant for a moment. Ichigo just nodded at this and stood up.

"We'll see you all tomorrow then!" He said nodding at them and then waved goodbye. Rukia and Orihime waved back too. After they left Rukia turned around and asked the same question Hisagi did moments before.

"Leave where Captain?"

"I've managed to rent us an apartment two blocks away from here, so we won't have to bother anyone. It's large enough for all of us to sleep." Matsumoto said barely awake, but proud grin was visible on her face.

"Rent? How?" Rukia asked in wonder.

"You don't want to know." Toshiro said tiredly when he passed her to his way to the exit door. Matsumoto and Hisagi followed. Rukia too, after waving Orihime goodbye, went after them.

* * *

><p>The apartment was a large one, with only basic furnishing. It had four rooms, including living room. It also had small kitchen and bathroom and a large balcony. The building was an older one so many apartments were vacant, including this one that was on the last floor. When Rukia stepped on the balcony she was amazed by the view. All of the rooftops around were smaller so she could see almost everything. She wondered for a second how Matsumoto got this, but decided that Hitsugaya was really right – she didn't want to know. Everyone already got ready for sleep, but she remained there, leaning on the fence, looking at the night sky. Sleep was not even near. The air was chilly, but she welcomed it, not really minding the cold. She never did actually...<br>There were so many things on her mind to even think about that. She really missed this place, but not as much as she thought she would. When she saw Ichigo and others today she saw how good they were doing and was really happy. Before she left to Soul Society everyone was tired and worn out because of that war, she was glad they got back on tracks. Orihime even told her today that she was planning on becoming a teacher. The rest too probably had plans. That was a good thing. They were all lost for a long time, just like Rukia, it was the time for them to find their way back. She was too walking the same road for a long time, so she really understood them. Only when she got the chance to become a lieutenant she realized she really needed a change and a new path. She was really grateful she had met Ichigo, he helped her a lot. And others too. She understood the importance of friendship because of them. Before them she thought she had lost everything, but now she knew she really did have someone to relay on. There was her brother that cared about her in his own way, and Renji, she could always count on him, and…

"You'll catch a cold Kuchiki!" When she turned around she could see Toshiro leaning on the balcony door, his hands in his pockets.

"It's not that cold Captain." She said softly. _And him…_ "And the view is really beautiful, so even if I do, it would be worth it." Toshiro then stood beside her, he too leaning on the fence.

"Then what about sleep? When was the last time you did that?" He said ignoring the view and looking at the violet beside him, she was looking at him as well. He could see that she was tired.

"You worry too much Captain, you know that right!" She said returning to the night sky above them.

"Tsk! You're too stubborn." He said sliding down and sitting on the ground, his back on the fence. They should get to sleep, he knew that, but the sleep wasn't coming at all. They remained motionless for few minutes, obviously enjoying a few moments of peace after a long day, until Rukia slid down and sat next to him, with her eyes closed. Toshiro turned his head to look at her. He really valued her as a friend. She could always guess what he was feeling and consult him. And every time she knew exactly what to say to help him feel better. There weren't many people in his life like that. He was _almost_ sure in his decision to keep her as that, not to jeopardize anything, but still… There was something else there, something he wanted to know.

"I miss Soul Society." She said almost whispering with her eyes still closed. Toshiro's eyes widened.

"Y-you miss Soul Society. I thought you loved this place?"

"I do, but…" She stopped for a moment. "Right now I would be preparing for my morning training…"

"Yeah, I guess it's pretty early." He returned his head and closed his eyes too.

"And I still have to master my third dance." True. Even though Rukia managed to perform it, she still needed the practice.

"Third dance?" Toshiro asked lost for a moment.

"Yes, Shirafune. I'm almost there, but I still need practice."

"White sword? The one you used in battle with that Espada?" He read that somewhere.

"Yeah." That fight was something Rukia really didn't liked to remember. "Anyway, that would be what I would be doing right now."

"Guess I would be there somewhere too." He said looking at her with a corner of his eye. This felt nice, he liked the peace she gave him.

"Yeah." She smiled softly up on remembering that they actually did meet every morning, even before they started talking. "But you would probably ignore me like always." She said opening her eyes and looking at him smirking. He didn't look at her at that moment, even though he realized her gaze was on him.

"It's not like you even tried talking to me, so don't give me that…"

"I value my life Captain." She said still smirking. It was true. Hitsugaya was too angry too even look at him most of the time when she came to the training grounds.

"You had no problem with me that night in the woods." He still wasn't sure why she did that. He was full with rage that night, nobody would even consider approaching him.

"Yeah, that was stupid of me." She said laughing softly. He turned around too look at her, one eyebrow raised, face serious.

"It _was _really. I could've have killed you." That was also true.

"Then what would you do now?" She said it as a joke. But Toshiro remained serious.

"I honestly don't know." It was a whisper, more a response to himself, than her. Her face went serious too as she looked at his eyes. After few seconds when Toshiro realized what he actually said, he continued. "Probably sitting somewhere worm." Rukia smiled at this.

"I thought you liked cold Captain?" There was a blush. Hitsugaya Toshiro blushed. But he turned around quickly not letting her to notice. It was his fault really, he deserved it. How could he not see that she would ask something like that? _Prodigy my ass._ There were a few moments of silence, not really an awkward one, but still a heavy one, until she spoke again. "If you're really cold, you should go inside. No need for both of us to get sick." She said softly. Toshiro turned around to look at her, raising one eyebrow.

"So, in another words, you would like me to leave!" He said looking at her. After he finished his sentence he saw her eyes widening and he smirked standing up. "I can go Kuchiki, it's-" But before he could even stand up, one small hand pulled him back on the ground and he sat again beside her, only this time even closer. They were facing one another and he could see a blush forming on her face.

"No. I didn't mean it like that…" Rukia said looking at him. The way those eyes looked at her every time made her feel…different. "Y-You should stay."  
>Toshiro never moved, he just kept looking at her. Every reason that said not to come even closer now evaporated in his mind, became unimportant, useless. It took only this, this closeness to make him forget about everything he thought out so perfectly, so precisely. And she…that look she gave him made him weak, made him surrender. All of his will power disappearing, so he moved…there was no other choice. He had no more strength in him to escape her. When he came closer he felt her breathing quicken and her eyes widening just a little, that blush still present on her face. The way the moon washed her face and those violet eyes, that now gained a slightly different color that he never saw before, made him curl his lips in a small smile. With his hand he removed that small piece of hair from her face and when his fingers brushed her face he felt her shiver. Rukia was either confused or afraid, she couldn't tell. First, that closeness that she was responsible for made her blush and then the way Hitsugaya Toshiro kept looking at her made her weak…literally weak, like she could just melt. She was never this close to a man, at least not in this way. But when he came even closer and when those cold fingers touched her cheeks…that made her feel different, made her feel something.<br>"C-Captain…" Was all she could utter right now, weakly, unsure why she even tried. He just came even closer and their noses touched. That contact made her shudder, but she didn't move away, she didn't try to escape. He gave her enough time to do that, but she just remained like that, looking at the teal in front of her.

"Don't call me that." He said whispering and surrendered. Slowly he leaned and kissed her, as softly as he could. When their lips touched they lost it, both of them. They were somewhere else, unaware of everything, lost and locked in that moment, in that touch. His one hand was still on her cheek. Rukia leaned even closer and titled her head a little, allowing Toshiro to deepen the kiss. And when he did, when their tongues met, when he tasted her and she tasted him…he knew. That was it. Even her hair smelled the same, even her skin felt the same. Why did he knew that, why did he dreamed that, he couldn't tell, but he was now sure. Rukia was enjoying every touch and every taste this white-haired man gave her. This contact felt nice…felt right. His touch was sending shivers through her whole body, and his smell was intoxicating to her. But soon it all stopped, they stopped, desperate for air. As soon as the kiss broke she opened her eyes and met teal ones. His hand was still on her cheek, and they were still so close, their noses touching, not moving. They just kept looking at one another, not sure if they could speak…should speak. But they had to. Toshiro removed his hand from her cheek, and moved a little, allowing her some space, but not too much of it. Rukia just kept looking at him, confused, unsure… _What just happened? Why did I…_ The situation became very uncomfortable for her, and he wasn't speaking, wasn't doing anything at all…just kept looking at her. And she became restless.

"I-I…This…I have to go!" She mumbled under her breath and stood up as quickly as she could and ran to her room. He thought he heard a low sorry from her, but he wasn't sure. He just remained like that, sitting at the ground and his head lowered a little. He shouldn't have done that. Even though he wanted it, she wasn't ready. He knew…  
>His hand went to his lips. Moments ago they were touching hers, tasting her and now…she's gone. <em>Damn it Toshiro! Damn it! Why did I have to do that?<em> He leaned back to the fence and closed his eyes. It wasn't the right thing to do. She had her burdens, her own doubts and problems and he just complicated the whole thing. But still… _That taste, that same taste…_ He wanted to know and now he finally did and... it only made him want more.


	6. I Bleed

**A/N:** And...I'm back! This chapter was very, very difficult. I had to pay attention on every little detail and every reaction. So, everything is there because it has to be.  
>I am taking this opportunity to thank the ones who read my one-shot. I just <span>had to<span> write it and share it with you! I am glad you liked it! Oh and I started a second story, but that's still far away from being uploaded here(HitsuRuki in AU).  
>Anyway, thank you for reading this and I hope you'll like it! Next chapter will take longer, but I hope I won't be gone too long!<p>

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Bleach!

* * *

><p><strong>Together Alone<strong>

_I Bleed_

* * *

><p>There was no way he could sleep, not even a minute. Every second and every detail from last night kept replaying itself in his mind. Why did he act so rash? Why did he have to take away the only thing right and sane in his life right now just because he couldn't control himself? Because of his <em>stupid urges<em> and his _stupid desires_… There was no way everything could go back to normal after what he had done. There was no way Kuchiki Rukia could look at him, talk to him and be near him like she was before…he took that away from her, from himself.  
>He shivered when cool morning wind past his cheeks and he let out a deep desperate breath that had been there for a while. His clear teal orbs kept looking at the sky wandering…if they only met earlier. If he only knew of her, he would find her and make sure to spend every second with her…near her. But wondering, wishing…it was a waste of time. How could he know that someone so small, so petite and gentle could change everything in his world? Why was he always late? Always the second choice…<br>But she wasn't the one to blame here, he was responsible for destroying their so fragile friendship. He was the one who wanted something more and took that choice away from her. He turned around for a second to take a look at the apartment behind him. He thought he heard a noise. Imagination. That was it, and only that. He came back to this balcony when he saw the sleep wasn't coming and still…there was no sign of her. He had to talk to her, explain himself. Apologize. Even though the chances of them getting back to what they used to be were small, almost non-existent, he had to try. What else could he do? And that was the worst part…seeing her. Seeing her and knowing he was late. How could he bare to watch her with him…with anyone, except himself? How can he sleep peacefully knowing the one thing he desired was not his and _his only_. If he only knew her before…Strange need washed him. The scent, her scent was still on his skin. He needed _to make this right_.

"Captain?" His mind played a trick on him. For one second he thought it was her voice, but it soon shattered.

"Hm?" He didn't even turn around, just kept looking at the sky above him. The air wasn't even cold enough. That, or he became numb from it.

"What are you doing there?" The voice was too gentle when you take in mind whom it belonged, so he turned around to look at her placing a weak frown. He could see Hisagi in the back entering the bathroom, but he ignored him, casting only one second glance his way. _Where is she?_

"What do you want Matsumoto?" He said roughly. There is no way he would let his lieutenant find out about him…them. She kept looking at him and he, for once, didn't recognize the look.

"Do you want some tea?" Ignoring. That she did best. She ignored many commands and advices he gave her, especially the questions. He frowned even more and then turned his head back to the view above him. After those nights with Kuchiki Rukia, being in anyone else's company was torture to him. He had to keep that well known posture and answer the way they all expected. It was exhausting, only now he could tell. And just imagining her in anyone else's company made him…angry.

"No." She could hear annoyance in his voice. Something was definitely up with her Captain. She sighted and turned around waving him off. She was not going to get anything out of this man now.

"Suit yourself!" She said casually. But that she was not. She saw him last night. He went on that same balcony, after her. He probably waited for everyone to fell asleep, but not long enough. Something was up, and she was damn sure to find out what. Only thing certain was that it involved him and Kuchiki girl. _Friends?_ He actually made a friend. That hasn't happen since…never actually. She frowned, standing in the kitchen. She knew her Captain very well. She has worked with him for some time now and he never, and that wasn't an understatement, never gained a friend like this, especially not a female friend. This was a huge step for him, she knew that. Hitsugaya Toshiro never knew how to behave around people. Maybe she wasn't the right person to speak about that, but she sure had more connections than him. His lack of skills in that department probably drove him to act so protective about Momo. Yes, she was indeed his childhood friend and he did in fact cared deeply for her, but everything about that friendship made Matsumoto shiver. Let's make something straight here… Matsumoto Rangiku cared about Hinamori, but it could not be measured with the bond she and that Captain shared…never. She always gave him the advantage. Because, even though he may seem like a cold, uninterested man that didn't really care for many things it was not the truth. Hitsugaya Toshiro was the kindest man she knew, and she knew a lot of them. He was always prepared to sacrifice his wellbeing for someone else, especially for Momo. And that was the main problem. He always did that. Matsumoto was all about sacrifice in the name of the friendship, but only if both sides appreciated the sacrifice. If not, then _what's the point_? For how long will someone bear the pain of the other, if that other doesn't bear his too? For how long until the one bearing it breaks? And she will not allow her Captain to break. So, all in all, that story she knew very well, but… _Where is she anyway?_

"Kuchiki?" Since Ikkaku and Yumichika haven't came last night they both got a room for themselves. Her Captain and Hisagi were the ones sharing a room. She knocked once and entered. Manners were never a stronger side of Matsumoto Rangiku. When she opened the door she saw the girl standing near the window, apparently in deep thought. She looked a lot like Hitsugaya. If she wasn't sure till this point that something was up, then now she had no doubt in her mind…at all. "What are you doing?" The girl turned around suddenly, startled. Matsumoto saw confusion first, then a small vague smile on her face.

"Nothing. Just thinking…" Rukia said softly. Matsumoto frowned. The two were not an easiest people around, especially not now.

"Yeah, well your tea is getting cold!" She said easily and could see the girl's eyes widening.

"T-Tea?" She said unsurely.

"Yeah, tea. Come on, I told Hisagi to take the table and some futon out on the balcony so we can enjoy ourselves." Matsumoto said smiling. Now the girl was definitely confused, she could see it. "Oh, come on!" She went in the room and pulled her out. First thing she saw was her white-haired Captain turning around to look at them. He seemed as confused and startled as the girl she pulled out from that room few seconds ago. _What the fuck is going on here?_ Hisagi was already near her Captain sitting on one piece of futon. Matsumoto hugged the girl with one hand and went to the balcony. She could see Hitsugaya turning around and lowering his head a little, but other than that he didn't move.

"There, now we can all-" In that moment a high-pitched noise came from the kitchen and Matsumoto clapped her hands. "TEA!" She left Rukia there on the balcony and went to get it as quickly as she could.

"Oi Kuchiki, sit down!" Hisagi said looking at the girl who seemed lost looking at the back of the white-haired Captain near him. That brought her back and she looked at him.

"Y-Yeah." And she sat beside Hisagi, lowering her head to look at her hands. She was trying with all forces not to blush, but the heat kept coming to her cheeks.

"AND I'm back!" Matsumoto almost yelled and she could see her Captain twitch a little, but he still wasn't turning around. She left the plate with tea on the small living room table that was now on the balcony, thanks to Hisagi. There were four cups there. "Oi Captain, I made you some too! Come, sit with us!" She said sitting right beside Rukia who kept looking at her hands.

"I told you that-"

"Yeah, well I made it, so come!" She said nonchalantly. His voice gave away that same hint of irritation she heard when she found him standing there. He sighted.

"Tsk! Fine." _That was easy_, she thought. He turned around and sat beside Hisagi. She saw he glanced at Kuchiki for a moment then returned his gaze to the tea on the table. _Oh, for the love of gods, those two are just…_

"So Kuchiki, what do you think?" Matsumoto said looking at the girl beside her. Rukia looked up confused.

"Think? About-"

"The apartment. The guy I met yesterday was kind enough to offer me this."

"Oh…It's nice." Rukia said looking at the living room behind Matsumoto. And Matsumoto grinned.

"You seem to like this balcony the most…" She switched her gaze to her Captain and continued. "…just like my Captain." Hitsugaya looked up immediately and she could see his eyes widening a little. Matsumoto saw that their eyes met for a second before both him and Rukia returned to look at the tea and Rukia had a small blush on her face. Alright, she had a plan here… but Hisagi interrupted suddenly.

"I still don't get how a random guy offered you this! It's pretty big." If she could have, she would slap his tattooed face right that moment, but no… _Patience_. She shrugged her shoulders grinning and then turned her head to look at Kuchiki who was sitting between her and Hisagi.

"So do you…like the balcony?" When Rukia looked at her she saw that she was making this situation very uncomfortable for the girl, but she had to. "I mean, I saw you last night here…both of you!" Again, Hitsugaya looked up, now even more startled. The man too had a small blush on his face. _What on earth…Oh, OH! _How could she be that stupid and not see this? She grinned. "So?"

"Damn it Matsumoto, stop talking about the balcony!" Hitsugaya said angrily. Rukia returned to look at her hands.

"Alright, no need to get angry right away. I was just asking." She said. "Geez Captain, you really need to take something for those nerves. You see Kuchiki, I have to work with that man every day! And he's always like this. Does he act like this around you?" Just a chit-chat, nothing else. Yeah, right! Rukia again looked at the girl startled and confused and Matsumoto saw her Captain frowning. "I mean, I heard you two were friends, so-"

"Matsumoto!" His voice was even angrier than it was few moments ago. Hisagi seemed confused. And Rukia…Matsumoto was really making this uncomfortable for her. "Stop molesting her."

"Seriously, you two are friends?" Hisagi said before he could stop himself pointing a finger first at Hitsugaya then at Rukia. Matsumoto laughed and that made the frown on her Captain face even heavier. She heard him taking a deep breath. This whole time the girl, Rukia, sitting next to her remained silent.

"Did anyone hear anything from Ikkaku and Yumichika?" Hitsugaya switched the subject, casting an angry look Hisagi's way. The black-haired lieutenant could feel his breath stopping in his throat. That's what you get for speaking before thinking. "I need to know how their mission went!" Hitsugaya said taking a sip of his tea, with a dark, heavy frown on his face. Matsumoto just rolled her eyes at this.

"Nah, it's still early…they'll come." She said relaxed. "So…" She said happily clapping her hands once. "…what are we going to do today?" She could hear her Captain growling. But Rukia was still silent, the only noise that came from her was the clinging of the tea cup every time she returned it to the table.

"I'm serious Matsumoto! We still don't know anything about our current situation, and I need to find out what they know." He said in a serious tone that made Matsumoto sigh. _Work, work, work…That's all he ever does!_

"I can go get them!" Rukia said suddenly. Matsumoto almost turned around to look at her, but then she saw that her Captain was now looking at the Kuchiki girl somehow…confused. After only few seconds he looked away and spoke.

"Go." He said quietly. Rukia quickly nodded, stood up and exited the apartment. Toshiro stayed like that for few more moments, but then stood up and spoke again. "I'll go get us something to eat."

* * *

><p><em>There, that's done too!<em> She went by Keigo's apartment to let Ikkaku and Yumichika know that Hitsugaya is looking for them and was now in the park, not really sure is it a good idea to come back to that apartment. This morning was very uncomfortable for her. She tried to stay in her room as long as she could…her plan, to be exact, was till the night fall. But then, Matsumoto came and dragged her out. Then she saw Hitsugaya standing there on the balcony…  
>Why was she feeling <em>this way<em>? The chatter and kid's voices were present, but she never heard them. The park she was in was crowded with people leading their own lives, their own day. She kept looking at the pair sitting on the bench. They were looking at one another, not even aware of their surroundings and she kept looking at them. They knew, understood what they were feeling, what they were doing, why couldn't she? The boy kept playing with the girls long black hair and she had a sincere smile on her face and was looking only at him. _Only_ at him.  
>She couldn't take it anymore, so she leaned her head on the tree behind her and closed her eyes. Questions kept replaying in her mind. Why did he kiss her? Why her? Why now? And why did she allow it? Why did she…<br>She could still feel his cold hand on her face, and his scent was on her, around her…everywhere. The wind washed her face and brought few sun rays along with it. There was no way she could go back. No way. The mere memories made her blush. She allowed it. Everything to play in her head again. Why does she keep torturing herself like that? Questions, questions…everywhere. She didn't have an answer to any of them. One thing was for sure…Captain Hitsugaya Toshiro kissed her. Her. _Wasn't he in love with Momo? Wasn't he suffering because of her? Damn it Rukia, why did you allow that? _  
>She wanted more than anything to hide in her inner world beside Sode no Shirayuki, in that storm. Not to see, not to feel, not to think…just be! There was confusion in her, in her heart and that was the only thing Kuchiki Rukia knew nothing about. How to solve it, how to deal with it, how to think clearly for even one second! Unknown. Everything else she could do. If needed she would go to three more wars, just not to deal with this.<p>

He kept looking at her, not sure if he should walk over there and speak. He had to, he knew that much, but…will she accept it? The apology? Does he even want to apologize? This girl confused him to a point he could not think about anything else. Just her. And last night.

"Kuchiki…" Her eyes opened in an instant. She didn't move, didn't look at him, just remained like that and he could see her already blushing.

"Y-Yes Captain?" _Why does she keep calling me that?_ He shook his head…of course she would call him that. He's still her superior. He is still a Captain. But…

"I…" What? What was he supposed to say? That he is sorry for last night? He wasn't. Not actually. That he understands how she feels right now? He doesn't. Not really. He wanted this. This. Her. "I need to speak with you." She still hasn't moved.

"O-Okay." _Why won't she look at me?_ He came closer and sat in front of her, but she still remained like that.

"Kuchiki…" He said more impatiently. "Look at me when I'm talking to you!" She did, right away. He saw that she was uncomfortable, but… _Oh, what the hell!_ "Last night…" The moment he said it, she lowered her head to look at her hands. "Look at me, I need to explain myself!"

"N-No need…Captain!" She said quietly. That did it.

"What do you mean _no need_?" He said angrily. She twitched a little.

"It's okay… I'm… Just forget about it!"

"Forget about it?" He said looking at her, his eyes slightly widened. "How can you ask me to forget about it?" He got angrier. And she wasn't answering. He sighted. "No, I don't regret last night, if that's what you're wondering!" In that instant she lifted her head to look at him…confused, startled, and still blushing.

"W-Why?" Her voice was breaking, she heard it. Why does she keep feeling like this? And why did that last thing he said made her… "What about…" He kept looking at her not really sure what is she actually saying.

"What?" He said. "What about what Kuchiki?"

"Momo." She said quietly. "I thought…you were in love with her. And I…I-"

"Do _you_?" He said suddenly. "Do _you_ regret last night?" Her eyes widened and she just kept looking at him for few moments before lowering her head again to look at her hands. He sighted, slightly angry, but…  
>"I'll take that as a yes. Fine then… I'm sorry I kissed you!" He said bitterly, stood up and walked away. Rukia looked at him, as if trying to say something, but…it was too late, he was already gone.<br>Why did he even ask her that? He knew very well that she wasn't ready. But it hurt, seeing her so confused and unsure. He had to know. Now he does. And it's worse. She couldn't even look at him… _Just fucking great! It's my damn fault! Why did I have to involve myself in this? I already have enough problems as it is!_

* * *

><p>"No! It's you that said we should go that way! If we didn't then we would get here on time! I-"<p>

"_You_ could've said something! I was only trying to help! You've been here more than I! If it's anyone's fault, it's yours!" The black-haired man said angrily.

"What? How was I supposed to-"

"SHUT UP…both of you!" White-haired man yelled. It was 9 o'clock already, and Matsumoto and Hisagi only now showed up for a mission. The whole Cleaning squad, except for the two, had been waiting in the apartment. Rukia was sitting on the sofa, quiet, even though Ichigo tried to talk to her few times, she didn't say a word. She hasn't spoke to Hitsugaya since this afternoon. She was busy thinking… figuring out what actually happened last night and today. And he…oh, he was a bit angry ever since he came back there and since those two decided to prolong their fun day. Yeah, just a bit! "I do not care whose fault it is! Both of you jeopardized this mission." Matsumoto tried to say something but he just pointed a finger at her and she lowered her head in an instant. "An hour late! An hour? I do not want to hear it Matsumoto!" He was practically hissing at the two.

"So, are we going or what?" Ichigo asked looking at the teal-eyed man before him. And the teal-eyed man just frowned at him. Everyone took that as a sign and started walking out. Rukia dragged Hisagi out of there as soon as she got up from that sofa. She wasn't really up to staying there any longer.

"Matsumoto, get out…NOW!" The woman sighted, and that earned her one more of his death glares. She nodded lazily and went out after everyone else.

* * *

><p>"You honestly think you can defeat me? Do not make me laugh shinigami trash!" They were standing in front of him in a fighting stance. The Adjuchas before them was huge and had a hole on his stomach. His skin was grayish and he had a white hollow mask on his face that had a long, thin horns. He was definitely larger than any they saw. When the two started flash stepping to their location he appeared out of nowhere. They were standing in the back alley already on alert, figuring out who will attack first: Adjuchas and his few Gillian's standing behind him, or them.<p>

"Attack only him! When you kill him Gillian's will stop attacking us!" She said quietly to her comrade. He nodded and charged, along with her. The Adjuchas commanded to Gillian's to attack them too and soon Rukia and Hisagi were trying to defend themselves against their Cero and to try to get to their main target. Because of the larger number of Gillian's and their constant Cero shots, they found themselves constantly avoiding the attacks, and not doing much of the offense.  
>"This won't work!" She mumbled under her breath, already sweaty and she had a cut on her left shoulder. Rukia went back few feet away and stood on the ground. She lifted her katana and commanded.<p>

"Mae Sode no Shirayuki…." She turned it clock-wise, which made the blade in her hands pure white, long white ribbon appearing on the end. Hisagi was still defending from the many Gillian's around them. "HISAGI, GET OUT OF THE WAY!" She yelled. The man quickly flash stepped behind her and she spoke the last command. "Tsugi no mai, Hakuren!" When she said that she pierced the ground four times, and four white ribbons appeared from it. She took a fighting stance and pure-white wave of ice appeared charging in the way where those Gillian's stood. When it hit them, they saw she managed only to freeze three of them, but that was still better than what they were doing few moments ago.

"Nice shikai Kuchiki!" Hisagi said looking at her pure-white katana. She smiled. But quickly after that she turned to look at Adjuchas standing few feet away from them. Hisagi frowned. "We have to split. One has to fight with those things, just to take their attention away from the boss."

"And we have to be careful. There are still people around here." Rukia said breathing heavily. The cut she had on her left shoulder didn't really hurt, but she was still little tired, just like Hisagi.

"I'll take him, you go after Gillian's!" Hisagi quickly said and she nodded. "Alright, let's do this! Kare Kazeshini!" He commanded and his one blade became two kusarigama-like weapons and they were connected with one chain, while the blades looked like pinwheel. They charged.

* * *

><p>"Are you going to ignore me the whole night?" She said pouting behind him. They were standing on the same rooftop like last night and he was trying to concentrate in to finding any hint of reiatsu. "It wasn't even my fault… Hisagi-"<p>

"Matsumoto!" He said annoyed. "Stop talking and start working!"

"What's with you today? I was just little late, not a big deal!" She said waving with one hand. "Ever since this morning you are acting weird!" He sighted, but didn't respond. It was stupid in a first place to try to shut her up. She will always do what she wants. "Oi! Are you even listening to me?"

"Leave me alone and concentrate on finding reiatsu we need to fight!"

"Did Kuchiki do something to you? I saw you two-"

"MATSUMOTO!" She was really set on annoying him.

"What? I was just asking." He took one deep breath and returned to watch the area before him. He doesn't need to think about that, about last night and…especially not about today. Maybe it was a bad idea to even wait for his lieutenant. He should've had gone alone. Now he's only going to get more annoyed. "I think she's fighting right now!" Matsumoto said quietly after few moments of silence. He frowned. _She_ was, he could sense her reiatsu that was pretty unstable and that meant only one thing…she was in the middle of a fight.

"I know. You should concentrate and find something so we can fight too!"

"Aren't you worried?" She said standing behind him.

"Why would I be worried?"

"It's only normal Captain. If you care for the girl, you are then worried if she will get hurt or not!" Matsumoto said softly.

"She can take care of herself." He said roughly. Matsumoto grinned.

"I like her!" She said happily, and Hitsugaya only frowned more.

"What's that got to do with anything?"

"I'm just saying…" He remained looking at the horizon before him, not turning around and that grin she had slowly faded away. Something was wrong, she could see. Something was bothering him, but what?  
>"You know…you're not that kid anymore." She said softly looking at the back of her Captain. She saw him stiffen, but he didn't say a word. "There are still people that fear you, but…there are those that don't. And if you don't trust them they can't trust you. It has to be both sided." He still wasn't turning around, but she saw him relaxing, and after few moments she spoke again. She needed to help him, make this right. "If you did something, just apologize."<p>

"What makes you think it was my fault!" He said roughly. She smiled.

"Is it worth that much? That much that you endanger your friendship with…her?" Silence. She grinned. He was too easy sometimes. "Be a man for once Captain and say you're sorry!" She said mockingly.

"Tsk! You are annoying me!" He said. And Matsumoto laughed. "Will you even work this evening?"

"Of course I will! But-"

"Shit!" His eyes widened and he stood up straight looking somewhere.

"Go!" She said quickly and he just nodded and flash stepped in an instant. She remained there looking in the direction he went for a moment, small smile creeping on her cheeks and she whispered to herself. "He does like her. I knew it!" And she flash stepped after him.

* * *

><p>"…and then I ate it! It really wasn't hard to make." The faces of the men around her were really bothersome. They were trying with all their strength not to puke or run somewhere.<p>

"That's…um, great Inoue." Ichigo said trying to calm his stomach. He turned around quickly to Ishida, but Ishida shook his head.

"Still nothing. But Kuchiki-san is fighting." He said narrowing his eyes.

"Yeah, I can sense that." Ichigo said looking ahead of him. "I can't believe there's not a single hollow on the radar. This is boring."

"Should I throw the bait?"

"No! Don't even think about it! The last time you did that, we had a town full of Menos!" Ichigo said angrily.

"Hm, I think that was your reiatsu, not me!" Ishida said offended, lifting up his glasses. "The bait I threw wasn't even that strong."

"Do not blame that on me. You were the one that said _Oh let's make a competition_, so it's your fault. I didn't re-" He stopped and the others did too.

"Kuchiki-san!" Orihime exclaimed. But before the others could even react Ichigo was already gone in the direction her reiatsu called him. Ishida frowned.

"I'll go after him and you two-"

"Yeah, we get it!" Chad said and Ishida just nodded and followed the orange-head man.

* * *

><p>"RUKIA!" He shouted, flash stepping near the three silhouettes that were in the back alley. He started running to them, but stopped. Froze in the spot. He just remained looking at them, specifically at the one with white hair that was kneeling near the Rukia's fallen body. The expression, the eyes, his composure…everything screamed something to him. He shook his head, remembering who was actually lying on the ground in the pool of blood and started walking slowly to them, not sure if he even belonged there. Did he? He stopped right beside them. Her face. It was pale, paler than usual, if that's even possible. Her hair was slick, soaked in her own blood. And the blood? It was everywhere. He couldn't even see from where it was flowing. The man kneeling beside her had her blood on his hands that were slightly glowing. <em>Kido healing<em>, he remembered. It was a great contrast. His white hair didn't really match with the blood around him. Why was he even here? He couldn't say a word. His look fell on the petite body near the white-haired man. She was practically thorn apart.

"Kurosaki, where's Inoue?" That snapped him out of it.

"S-She-" He tried.

"Bring her. NOW!" The man yelled, pricing him with his teal eyes, but quickly he returned to the fallen body near him, continuing with his healing. Ichigo couldn't move.

"I'll go!" The voice behind him said. Ichigo turned around quickly and saw Ishida nodding him and disappearing quickly after that. He turned around again and just now noticed the black-haired lieutenant standing there, looking at Rukia in shock, Matsumoto right beside him. Ichigo could still feel Rukia's reiatsu, but it was falling. Quickly. He fell to his knees and stared at her blood-soaked body. Just now he saw she had a long slash on her stomach, her shinigami outfit thorn, small parts of her pale, blood-soaked skin showing. He could feel his stomach turning. She was thorn. Slashed, almost in two parts. The man beside her didn't move. Ichigo wasn't even sure if he even breathed. His face was screaming pain, but his hands were steady and Ichigo could see small amounts of sweat pouring on his forehead. He could see the man was concentrating, the hardest he could, but the Kido couldn't heal her fast enough.

"Kuchiki-san!" The girl screamed running to them. Her face showed horror, pain, fear, as she fell beside Rukia's body. Hitsugaya quickly moved allowing her to come near. He stood up and went only one step back, still looking at the girl that was _dying_… _No, she won't die_, Ichigo thought. He didn't move. He could just stare at the Captain near him. Nothing else.

"…Souten Kisshun!" That's the only thing he heard, before the orange see-through shield appeared above Rukia.

"I-I am sorry sir. It was my fault. She…I…lost balance." Hisagi muttered. Hitsugaya didn't move, or even acknowledge the man talking beside him. Matsumoto placed the hand on Hisagi's shoulder as if telling him it's better to be quiet now. It was. She knew. Her Captain was a ticking bomb.

"I-Inoue? What…happened?" The moment they all heard her voice it was as the air became lighter, easier to breathe.

"Rukia?" The man knelt again beside her, and Ichigo only remained looking at them. "What happened? Can you breathe?" Hitsugaya said quickly. Rukia turned to look at him.

"A-Adjuchas…Gillian's…" She muttered.

"It's okay. Rest now, you'll tell me later." Toshiro said quietly after seeing her slowly losing consciousness.


	7. Can You See It Now?

**A/N: **It's been awhile, ha? At least for my updates. I was distracted, because I got new graphics tablet(it's awesome, btw)! But luckily, that distraction didn't take me away from my story work for too long.  
>Anyway, here's the new chapter. This story just got longer! I don't know if that will make you happy or what, but with this chapter I opened the paths I didn't even think I shouldcould. I hope you'll like it!  
>Thank you all for your support and wonderful words! I really appreciate it!<p>

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Bleach!

* * *

><p><strong>Together Alone<strong>

_Can You See It Now?_

* * *

><p>He then stood up suddenly and turned around to face the black-haired lieutenant standing there still in shock. Hitsugaya's face showed no emotion, only cold, just like the wind that started suddenly around them. When Hisagi took one look at those eyes before him, he lowered his head from fear and guilt that washed him.<p>

"Explain!" He commanded, his voice as cold as his expression. His hands were covered in blood, but he ignored it, keeping them down. Hisagi let out a deep breath and silently cleared his trout. He knew Captain Hitsugaya and his protectiveness towards the ones he holds dear, he himself was friends with Momo so he saw it few times, but he never thought that Kuchiki was this close to the man. The others kept silent. Orihime was still concentrated in healing the wounds left on the girl lying on the ground, unconscious.

"One Adjuchas and few Gillian's…" He started silently. "We were on the way to our destination and they just showed up. The plan was that I attack Adjuchas and…she would go after Gillian's…" The whole time white-haired man was looking directly in his eyes, and it was making him very uneasy. Especially because of the wind that ruffled his white hair, while the man wasn't even bothered by it. He looked…scary. Teal eyes almost glowing in the dark, and he didn't move, didn't even blink. "But then…" Hisagi's look fell to the ground. "I lost balance and…I thought he would slice me in half, kill me, but…that never happened. The hit…never came. W-When I opened my eyes s-she was…she was standing right in front of me with katana in her hands. First I thought we did it…she did it, because Adjuchas was almost cut in half, but then…the hit…the hit I was supposed to receive…she…s-she just fell." Matsumoto came behind the black-haired guy and once again placed the hand on his shoulder, probably to calm him down, but more to protect him from the man that was still piercing him with his teal eyes.

"Where is he now?" Hitsugaya asked coldly.

"Who?" Hisagi asked confused.

"Adjuchas. You just told me he was _almost_ cut in half. Where did he go?"

"I…I didn't see." He said quietly. "I apologize sir!" Hitsugaya just frowned and turned his back on the black-haired lieutenant.

"Matsumoto, Inoue and Hisagi…" He said looking at Rukia that was lying on the ground. "…you will take her to the apartment so she can rest and Inoue can proceed with heeling. Is that clear?"

"Got it!" Matsumoto said happily and urged the two to get on the way. Hisagi lifted Rukia's body as softly as he could and followed blond-haired woman and orange-headed girl, that was on the verge of tears, to the said destination. Hitsugaya turned from looking at the way they went to look at Ichigo and Ishida that were left standing there.

"You two continue with your assigned destination." He said coldly and turned around, but before he could leave, the voice of orange-top substitute stopped him.

"What? Hell no! I want to find that son of a bitch too!" Ichigo said harshly.

"Do not make me repeat myself Kurosaki." Hitsugaya said over his shoulder in a low and cold tone.

"I don't give a crap what you'll do, I'm going to find that thing no matter what you say!" Ichigo said clenching his fists, becoming angrier. "Rukia is my friend and that thing almost killed her! I will not go back and pretend everything is fine!"

"Is she now?" Hitsugaya said almost mockingly, but wasn't turning around. His body was stiff, and he began clenching his hands in fists. This was not the right time to question this white-haired Captain. Ichigo's eyes widened.

"What's that supposed to mean? And what the hell do you have with this anyway?" Because of that last sentence Hitsugaya turned around to face the man that was on the verge of yelling. He came one step closer, his face still cold without any hint of emotion. Quincy in the back remained silent, observing the two men standing there.

"Do not speak about the things you know nothing about…or even care to see." Ichigo was dumbstruck. He kept looking at Hitsugaya not sure what to say. And Hitsugaya just turned around and flash stepped somewhere. If it was any other night he would snap at that substitute in a second, but his priorities were elsewhere.

* * *

><p>"How is she?" He said entering the apartment.<p>

"Captain? Where the hell were you? I almost-"

"_How_ is she?" He said demanding the answer, not in the mood for her little questionnaire. Matsumoto looked at him and saw he was covered in blood. She frowned. He was gone for a while now. She tried to sense his reiatsu, but the _bastard_ hid it. She was worried he would overreact…and looking at him in this condition, he probably did.

"She's sleeping. What's that?" She asked pointing a finger at his uniform.

"Blood." He said coldly as he passed her on the way to the bathroom. When the door closed Matsumoto turned to look at the orange-head girl sitting on the sofa smiling confused, while Hisagi never even moved. She took one deep breath and turned around again.

"I need a drink!" And with that she was gone to the kitchen. Orihime left one deep breath free. Rukia was safe. Alive. It was all that mattered. She was glad. Everyone was worried. _Everyone._ Even the people that she would never guess that had anything to do with Rukia. She turned around to face the black-haired lieutenant sitting on the floor and when she caught his look she smiled gently, just to make him feel easier. He smiled back, but it faded away quickly. Orihime could see he was feeling really guilty.

"She is safe now." She said quietly and his head fell. He took one deep breath and remained like that.

"She almost died. It should have been me there…" He said quietly.

"Oh don't worry, it could still happen, just wait until my Captain cleans his uniform!" Matsumoto said grinning, holding one bottle of see-through liquid. Orihime looked up confused, but remained quiet. "Judging from the amount of blood on it, he still has some anger left!" When she saw the way Hisagi twitched she laughed and sat next to him. "Nah, don't worry…he's just overprotective and possessive." She said more softly. The man had enough of death treats for today. "He'll calm down eventually…I hope!" She laughed, but the two sitting near her remained quiet. One confused, other guilty. Matsumoto turned around to look at her Captain that entered the living room with small frown on his face.

"Did she wake up at all?" He said tiredly looking at Matsumoto.

"No. Inoue healed her, but she still lost a lot of blood. We should leave her to rest." She said calmly. Deep breath escaped him and he just nodded.

"Fine then." He said turning around.

"Where are you going?" She asked quickly.

"To rest." He said over his shoulder. "I suggest you leave that bottle and do the same." And with that he went to his room. Matsumoto felt easier. For a moment she thought he would go back out there, but luckily he had enough of sense in that white head of his to know better.

"Alright! Who wants some?" She said happily raising her bottle towards the two that were sitting next to her. Orihime began waving her hands, just to stop Matsumoto from making her drink that see-through liquid, and Hisagi didn't even move. After few moments of silence he spoke.

"When…" He stopped for a second, trying to gather the strength. "When did they become friends?" Matsumoto smiled and took one sip from the bottle in her hands before she spoke.

"I don't know…I mean, I only saw them together once or twice." She said and drank more. Orihime kept looking at the two sitting near her, not sure of what they were actually talking about. "I found out about it recently. Captain told me, actually." Orihime's eyes widened. It all became much clearer.

"Kuchiki-san is friends with Captain Hitsugaya?" She asked looking at Matsumoto.

"Yup!" Matsumoto said happily. "And from the looks of it, they are very close friends." They sat like that for few moments, apparently thinking about it more.

"I never thought he would…after the…" Hisagi began, but he just couldn't say it. Matsumoto smiled softly.

"After Momo?" She was still smiling, but something inside her twitched.

"Yeah… after that war…" Hisagi said looking at his hands. "That was a great tragedy for him, I never imagined-" But, before he could finish, Orihime stopped him.

"And there is no one else who understands that better than Kuchiki-san does." She said determined to stop this man from questioning reasons behind their friendship. She didn't knew much about that whole situation with Captain Hitsugaya and the girl named Hinamori Momo, but she knew Kuchiki Rukia enough to know that anyone would want her as a friend. Even though she was jealous of Rukia from time to time, she cared for her. She was her friend. An honest one.  
>"Kuchiki-san is a strong, kind and caring person. And she had her slice of tragedy too. Even before this war, so… do not question this ever again." She said angrily. The outburst of Orihime's anger came rarely, but when she did feel it, she would let anyone know…well, <em>almost<em> anyone. Matsumoto smiled. It was all true. Hisagi was just surprised…and felt guiltier than he already was.

"I apologize. I shouldn't have said that." He said looking at his hands.

"I just hope…" Matsumoto began and took one sip from her bottle. "…that she has a lot of patience, because she will need it around him." She said and laughed. The other two didn't.

* * *

><p>"She has to go back Captain, you know she's not in the condition to fight anymore." Matsumoto said quietly standing behind her Captain on the balcony in the apartment.<p>

"I know." He said quietly looking ahead. "Let her rest for now. I'll contact the Soul Society tonight." He said looking at the clear morning sky. Matsumoto nodded even though she knew he cannot see her. After few moments of silence he spoke again. "We need to hurry with this mission. Contact the rest of the Cleaning squad and tell them to meet me here in a few hours. I'll rearrange the teams, so we can…proceed."

"Okay." She said and started exiting the apartment, but before she left she turned around to look at him again. "Captain…" He glanced at her over his shoulder. "Eat something." After she saw a frown on his face she laughed and closed the door.

Toshiro sighted and left the balcony, going straight to _her_ room. He hasn't seen her, not since last night and the condition she was in. Only remembering that image made him angry again. And to make things worse, when he saw her before that in that park he practically yelled at her.  
>He knocked softly on her door, just in case she was awake, but when no answer came he decided to enter anyway. She was covered in light blue blanket, sleeping. From where he stood he couldn't see any cuts or bruises on her body and he was glad that Inoue did a decent job. He entered and closed the door behind him. For some odd reason he couldn't move for few seconds, just kept standing there. The room was too dark, probably because someone closed the curtains so sun wasn't present. He could see her uniform, or what was left of it, lying neatly folded near her. She was wearing white sleeping kimono and had a peaceful expression on her face. He took one deep breath and went to the window to allow some light in the room. When he pulled the curtains he heard her move.<p>

"W-what…" That was all she said and he quickly turned around and knelt near her awakened figure.

"It's okay, rest." He said softly, not sure if he should touch her or not. The hand that he stretched to her, returned to him quickly.

"C-captain…" She said rubbing her swollen eyes. He saw she tried to move immediately, but failed, probably due to blood loss. After a few changed painful expressions, she managed to sit up, facing the teal-eyed man before her. He wanted to tell her to stop moving, but decided better not to. "What happened?" She said finally, looking down to her stomach, and after only few seconds her eyes widened. "Hisagi?"

"He's fine…" Toshiro said harshly. "Thanks to your foolish move!" She stared at him for few moments, confused, until he spoke again. "You should rest now." His expression became as cold as always, brows narrowed and those eyes kept piercing her. She could see it clearly, he was angry. Why, she didn't know.

"I'm fine." She said boldly, breaking their look. He sighted.

"You're _not_ fine. You almost died last night. The blood loss-"

"I said I'm fine!" She said looking directly at him again. He twitched a little from the tone that took over her voice, but frown creped on his face then.

"Stop being so stubborn."

"I'm not stubborn." She said crossing her arms.

"That's what stubborn people do." He said pointing at her arms. Her eyes widened for a moment, before she frowned once again. "I'll contact the Soul Society tonight, so till then you should get some sleep." He said and started to stand up, but once again he found himself hitting the floor because of the certain someone. Not that he mind…

"What? Why?" She said staring at the man before her, not even minding that she just pulled him down with all her force. He frowned.

"What do you mean why? You can't proceed with this mission." He said angrily.

"Why? I'm fine. There's no need-"

"Rukia…" He said warningly. His tone was cold and serious and she stopped talking because of that, and from the surprise. It was strange hearing her first name gliding over his tongue. When he saw that he frightened her, he took a deep breath and relaxed. He wasn't even aware of how he called her. Probably because it felt so natural to him. "You…almost died last night." He said softly. Her look fell to her hands, that were now playing with the edges of her sleeping kimono. "And even though you're healed now, the blood loss was…" He stopped for a second, trying so hard not to remember that scene from last night. Her body was covered in red liquid and she looked so lifeless, so… _No!_ "It was massive. I cannot let you-"

"I don't care about the blood loss." She said suddenly. Her voice was calm and low. "I'm fine, alive, that's all that matters. And I came to this mission knowing I could get killed. I don't plan on quitting just because of some stupid injury."

"Stupid injury?" He said angrily, looking at her. She was still playing with the edges of her kimono. _Stupid injury? Damn it Rukia!_ He couldn't stop it anymore, the images returned to him all at once. Hitsugaya Toshiro thought that he was usually very good at masking almost everything that concerned his true nature, his true feelings, but somehow he failed to do that every time he found himself around this girl. And those images weren't helping…at all. Her low reiatsu, river of blood around her and her lifeless figure… Last night he tried to remain focused, to do everything he could to save her, but behind that curtain he was scared. Terrified, actually.  
>"Look at me…" He said lifting her head with his hand. Her eyes widened because of a sudden contact, but that didn't bother the white-haired Captain at all. "I cannot let you die here. What you did last night was stupid and reckless and because of it you almost lost your life. If you think that I would just nod and allow you to proceed with this mission without a word, then you've lost your mind. Last night…" He stopped for a second trying to clear his head from the images that kept haunting him ever since he saw her lying there in the pool of blood. "I thought…" His look fell for a second and she felt his hand shiver for a moment, but he looked up seconds after that and frowned. "I'm still a Captain responsible for this and I've decided you are going back." His hand didn't move, not even after she spoke.<p>

"That's selfish." She said quietly.

"Why is that selfish?" He said harshly, still looking at her. "I am simply-"

"You know very well why." She said looking directly into teal eyes that were now slightly wide in shock. "This is my job, I am trained to do this and…you just want to make me safe."

"And why is that wrong?" He said looking at her violet eyes. "You're…you're my friend after all. And I have a right to keep you safe."

"But I'm a shinigami too. And you know our job very well. This is what we do. I put my life on the line for a comrade, you would do the same in my place." She said sternly. His look fell down. He knew she was right, but still…that didn't changed the fact that she could've died last night.

He shivered when her hand covered his on her face. He saw her eyes softened and a deep breath escaped her pink lips, before she spoke again.

"I'm sorry…Captain."

"For what?" He looked up and asked almost whispering, confused from her sudden apology. He fought the urge to pull her to himself.

"For last night… for worrying you. I must've been…"She could see his eyes that were painted with pain and horror. Last night was definitely not as easy night for him, she knew. "For everything…"

"It's okay. I'm fine. And you're safe, so…" He said softly. She wanted to slap him. The tired look on his face and that stiffened composure told her he was far from being fine. She didn't know what actually happened last night, but from one look at the man before her she knew it wasn't a pretty sight. And one thing she saw so clearly that it shocked her was that he cared. He actually cared. So, she pulled.  
>Before he could even react, he found himself inhaling her scent. Her gentle arms were wrapped around his back and her head was buried in his chest. He sat there for few seconds, his hands in the air, not really sure what the hell just happened, before he relaxed and buried his head in her hair, pulling her even closer. His whole body relaxed and he felt a sharp pain in his abdomen. It wasn't really a physical pain, it was more from the inside. From realization that he could have had lost her. It was that simple, one bad night on the mission and she was gone. She felt his grasp tightening around her, but she allowed it, not really minding a dull pain that went through her body. She needed this, but…he needed it more.<p>

"Thank you." He said in a low husky voice and buried his head in her hair. Before she could speak they heard a door slam and they let go of each other in a second. First thing they did was looking in each other eyes surprised and slightly embarrassed, like what they were doing was wrong. He even saw her blushing a little. But he stood up and offered her a hand, convinced that after her outburst she can manage walking. She took it and stood up slowly. After Toshiro opened the door he saw four people standing in the hallway and he frowned looking at one of them. He exited the room and moved a little allowing Rukia to exit too.

"I found them near the apartment, so I decided it was time for some house visit." Matsumoto said grinning. And when she saw the look on her Captain face she fought the urge to laugh like crazy. "Alright, Captain, help me make some tea." She said waving to Toshiro and he just sighed and followed her into another room.

"Kuchiki-san, are you feeling okay?" Orihime asked entering the living room. Rukia sat on the sofa and smiled softly. She kept looking at the direction that white-haired man went.

"I'm much better. Thank you for healing me." She said looking at orange-headed girl that smiled and sat next to her. "Did you manage finishing your mission last night?" She asked looking at two man that sat across her. Ishida pushed his glasses up, while Ichigo kept looking at her, somehow confused.

"Well, we never found any hollows or Menos last night. We'll have to work harder tonight." Ishida said seriously.

"Good." She said and her look fell to the floor. She remembered, she will be going back. Not that she will miss the place, it's just that once again she failed to prove herself as a shinigami, especially now that she is a lieutenant. Her brother will not be happy about it.

"Are you sure you're okay Kuchiki-san? Do you need to lie down?" Ishida asked, looking worried. Rukia's head snapped up, realizing she just transmitted everything she felt to her face, but before she could speak someone interrupted.

"Damn it, I told you that you should rest!" Hitsugaya Toshiro said angrily entering living room, followed by his lieutenant that was holding a plate with tea.

"Leave her alone, she's just fine. Right Kuchiki?" Matsumoto said grinning and winking at her. Rukia smiled, amused by Toshiro's anger that was now directed straightly at his lieutenant.

* * *

><p>Heavy. It felt like a huge burden was on her eyelids. When she tried to open it, her head started to hurt and the only thing she saw was white. But she couldn't decipher what it was, her vision was blurred. She kept seeing dots all over the place and that white, whatever it was, kept dancing around her. And her eyes hurt like hell, they felt…dry somehow. When the first pain settled she heard voices around her. To her it looked as they were whispering, but it could be due to her condition for all that she knows.<br>When she tried to move her lips, she felt that they were dry too. She couldn't feel the tongue at all, as she was trying to lick them and to get any saliva to help her call her own voice. That was a failure.  
>She could feel some dull pain, aside from her eyes that were still burning, but she wasn't clear where exactly. The white kept distracting her. Uncomfortable, that was the only feeling she was sure right now. She needed to move, she knew that much. Maybe the voices will help her. <em>Did it work?<em> She wasn't even sure if she managed to move a muscle.

"…awake." That was the only thing she heard, not really sure of the tone of that voice. But soon enough she saw something she recognized.

"Can you hear me?" The voice said. Silhouette was right before her, and she kept blinking just to clear her vision. _Speak!_ But her voice just wasn't coming. "Rukia, can you hear me?" Raw male voice repeated.

"…y-yes." She said and tried to nod, but the second part was harder that it looked like.

"Thank gods, she's awake." He said turning around to face some other figure standing in the same room. She blinked again few times in a row. She knew this place. _4__th__ Division_. She's been here before.

"W-why…" She couldn't finish it. Her mouth was too dry and that second figure that was standing in the room seemed to read her mind, because soon soft hands were helping her sit up, and gave her some liquid. Captain Unohana Retsu. She was sure now, this were the rooms of 4th Division. After few moments her vision became better too, and now she clearly saw the two figures before her. Abarai Renji and Unohana Retsu were standing beside her bed and kept watching her. Renji had a worried look on his face, while Captain Unohana was calm, like usual.

"Rukia, can you see and hear me?" The woman softly said looking at her.

"Yes." Rukia's voice was clearer now, to her surprise. _What was that liquid?_

"Can you move?" Unohana asked again. Rukia blinked few times, before she moved her hand, and that send dull pain trough her whole body.  
>"I see." The woman said and took the paper beside Rukia's bed and began to write something. Rukia ignored that and turned to face her red-headed friend. She needed answers.<p>

"Why am I here Renji?" She said nervously, remembering that in her mind she was on her mission just few moments ago. And Renji frowned.

"What do you mean _why am I here Renji_?" He imitated her mockingly, annoyed at her question. Her brows narrowed.

"Exactly that. There's nothing wrong with me." Renji fought the urge to strangle her in that instant.

"Yeah, nothing wrong!" He said mockingly again. "Hell, you almost died and lost amount of blood that could kill three people, but yeah…nothing." Her frown became heavier. She knew he was right, but that didn't change the fact that she failed on her mission.

"Rukia…" Black-haired woman began. "I'm afraid that Lieutenant Abarai is right. You need to rest. Your injuries were severe and even though Inoue healed you, you are still weak to fight." She said calmly and Rukia just let out a deep breath in defeat. Who can argue with Captain Unohana Retsu anyway!  
>"I need to leave now, and Abarai…" She said turning around to face the red-headed man. "…you should leave soon too." He nodded and she left, leaving the two friends alone in the room.<p>

"Renji, did…" She began and stopped lowering her head, not having much strength or courage to continue.

"Yeah, Captain Kuchiki was here earlier!" He said as if he could read her mind. "And no, he didn't say a thing. Don't worry about that now, concentrate on your healing." She nodded weakly.

"But…what happened actually? Last thing I remember is sitting in Inoue's apartment and now this." She said nervously, looking at her childhood friend.

* * *

><p>The man could not stop walking through the room as the others were sitting there looking at his changing behavior. One moment he was yelling and the other he was calm. Now, he switched to nervous. Then he stopped all of a sudden and looked at them.<p>

"I'm going to rearrange the teams now." He said sternly and began. "And I need to make sure that every team has the same power level. One team I won't change is yours." He said looking at Yumichika and Ikkaku that were standing near him. "Your route is the same, and as far as I'm concerned you can leave and begin right now." The two just nodded and left, eager to find some good opponents. Hitsugaya sighted and continued.  
>"Matsumoto and Uryuu, you're together and take the destination that Matsumoto and I went." He was making huge pauses between the announcement of teams, and everybody could see that there was something that was bothering him. "Hisagi, Chad and Inoue, you're the third one and that leaves…"<br>He sighed as he looked at light brown eyes that were as narrowed as his own. "…you and me." He said tiredly.

"Fine." Ichigo said looking away. He knew that the white-haired man was doing this simply because he had to, and if he could choose he would fight alone too.

"Kurosaki and I will take the wider area, because I believe that that way we can finish this mission faster." Hitsugaya added. "Remember, if anything goes wrong use the cell phones you got and if you find anything unusual contact me immediately. We all know something strange is going on around here and I believe it's not just average hollow overpopulation. Alright, let's go!" He said and exited the apartment, followed by the rest of them.


	8. You Breathe In When I Exhale

_**A/N:**_ Happy New Year people! I hope you had fun celebrating and I hope this year will be great one for all of you! I wish you a lot of happy memories!  
>Can you remember your first dream(Hatsuyume)? According to Japanese tradition it foretells your luck for the upcoming year. I have no idea what mine was! Lol! It was probably some weird shit, like always, that doesn't make <em>any<em> sense!  
>Anyways, the story... Let's see, after rereading the last chapter I felt I didn't give my all on it. Don't know why, but it just felt that way. The story line was okay, but I think I could have done a better job. This one is different though...at least it looks like that now. It's much longer and it has a lot of HitsuRuki moments. I kicked my blockade, not writer one, but the one with this story. It was moving too slow. And yes, I know, the chapter title is pretty long, but I like it, so...yeah.<br>Thank you for your support and lovely words! I hope you like this chapter too. See you soon!

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Bleach!

* * *

><p><strong>Together Alone<strong>

_You Breathe In When I Exhale_

* * *

><p><em>Oh the hell with it!<em> Rukia was walking the halls of the 13th division eager to find her Captain and ask him for a permission to go back to her assigned mission. She could no longer take _ah Kuchiki-san, are you okay_ bullshit from anyone. It's already been three days, and still everyone was set to annoy her with mindless questions and stupid empty comments. She's okay, okay? On her feet, healed and ready to go back. Yes, she knew they just cared, at least some of them like Hanataro or 13th division 3rd seats, but enough is enough. She's not some weak shinigami that can't take one hit and continue. She's a lieutenant for crying out loud. A lieutenant. Why was everyone set to keep her here when she can obviously go back?  
>The halls were crowded again, with people she didn't recognize, or cared for in this moment, she assumed they were recruits. Just the way they would pass her shyly, their heads lowered was enough proof for her. She past by them determined to find her Captain. If she had luck, he would understand her. She needed to go back. Her head snapped up, feeling well-known reiatsu nearing. Alright, she can do this. She has to.<br>A light tap on the wooden door, before hearing a low welcoming voice, she went in to find him sitting by his desk, not doing much, except for drinking his tea. His long white hair hugging his shoulders, while he slowly raised his head to greet her with warm light smile.

"Ah, Rukia…I expected you." He said calmly. She bowed down, but soon had to stand up because of his scolding she was acting too formal, like always. "Come in and take a seat." She did. "What can I do for you?" But she was sure he already knew her reason for coming to him this early in the morning, especially while she was on the leave for few days because of her injury, so she really wasn't expected here, at least not by anyone else but this gentle Captain.

"I am sorry for disturbing you Captain…" Her head was lowered as she watched the dark-wooden floor in his office, now not really sure in herself. "…but I wanted to speak with you, if you have time?"

"Of course I do Rukia. What's wrong?" He asked gently, probably already knowing the answer.

"Well…" _This is it, just ask_. Her head went up to look him directly at his calm eyes. "I wanted to ask for your permission to go back on my Cleaning mission." A few moment past in dead silence, so she felt the need to continue. "I know very well the extents of my injury, but I believe I am well now and ready to go back." She said bowing hear head a little. Ukitake just sighed.

"Rukia…" He said quietly. "It's only been three days, there's-"

"I know Captain, but I'm better and there's no need for me to sulk around here and-"

"Rukia." He cut her off, his voice a bit harsher than usual, so she stopped talking. "I understand that you want to go back and finish what you started, but…that does not change the fact that you are still not in the condition to proceed. And, even if I wanted to agree to your request, I have clear orders to keep you here." Rukia's head bolted up when he said the last few words.

"Clear orders? Who? Why?" She said losing herself in her own thoughts trying to process what she just heard.

"Well, it's more of a friendly request and…" Ukitake stopped himself from his ranting and again smiled gently at his lieutenant that was standing lost before him, quickly glancing over the badge that was tied on her right hand, remembering a person that both he and young Kuchiki held dear to their hearts. "The point is, you should rest Rukia. And if I acknowledge you are indeed feeling better I will send you back, but right now your request have been denied." He said slowly and carefully trying not to say anything out of a place. He heard Rukia sigh before she spoke again.

"Okay. Thank you Captain." She wanted to protest, but she didn't have enough strength in her to practically oppose to the person before her. She may be stubborn, like _some_ people told her, but she did respect the man before her and held his opinions high after all. Light nod from the man's features was her sign to leave, so she did, excusing herself on the way.

That did not change the fact that she was pissed. Oh she was, walking fast trough the halls she knew very well. Again, she is stuck in this place with nothing to do. Her leave from her duties, that they made her take forcefully, was one thing. Okay, she will manage not doing much for few days.  
>Then there was that constant worry that took over every single person in her presence, some just doing it out of fear and respect from her name and status or the want to get any information out of her so they can be the main carriers of new and fresh gossip, others really bothered by the fact that she almost died three nights ago. Alright, she just needs to avoid every shinigami in Soul Society. It wasn't impossible.<br>But the fact that someone asked her Captain to deny her request was something else. She frowned when few rays of sun washed her face, blinding her for few seconds. _Who would do such thing?_ _Brother? But Renji said he didn't say a thing when he came to visit._ But he never really said much anyway. Most of the things he did Rukia found out about it too late._ Or Captain Hitsugaya? But would he really do such a thing? Go all that way just to ask Ukitake something like that._ Then again, he was the one who brought her here. Renji told her he personally carried her in the rooms of 4th division after her sudden blackout. And he even made sure that Captain Unohana gets every detail of what happened that night with her and Hisagi, not leaving any information behind. Only remembering the face of the young prodigy, made her face flush in red color.  
>And then there was that. Yeah. What was <em>that<em> anyway?

"The fuck are you doing walking around?" She heard a familiar male voice that snapped her out of whatever she was contemplating in her head. Okay, she can handle this male. At least he was simple enough, not like other ones present in her life.

"What do you want Pineapple?" She snapped at him automatically, taking a fierce stand before him. So her patience wasn't as great as she thought. The sun kept washing her face, and it was making her more nervous than she already was.

"I want to know what the hell are you doing walking around like that?" Red-head snapped back at her. The frown fell on his face.

"What? I have to ask you for a permission to go out for a walk?" She was starting to feel really annoyed by the men that surrounded her. Will she ever be able to walk and act freely? _That's what you get by surrounding yourself with idiots Kuchiki Rukia_, she thought bitterly.

"I have no time for your bullshit, just go home and rest already." Abarai Renji said harshly, not minding her deadly look that fell on his face.

"Oh fuck it!" She said out loud and walked pass him in a hurry. She couldn't take this anymore. When will they leave her alone already?She heard him yell something behind her, probably some curses, she didn't care really. She felt the anger rising in her stomach and she knew this was all throwing her out of her balance. They were all throwing her out of her balance. First she almost gets yelled by that teal-eyed Captain for protecting her comrade, then they toss her back here and now they won't let her leave because she was hurt. _Was_, she thought. _I'm perfectly fine now. Damn it!_ She was almost running to get away from her own division, deep in her thoughts, not really caring or having any energy left inside her to face the people around her just to hear the same sentences she was hearing this past three days.  
>She finally stopped, feeling a light pain cross her abdomen, and found herself near the place she knew very well, but wasn't actually happy about ending there at all. Just days ago she had her encounter here with a man she was trying so hard not to think about. <em>Damn you Hitsugaya Toshiro, damn you!<em>  
>She fell down, to sit near the tall tree she got to know because of that white-haired prodigy. Her breathing was heavy, as she fought the pain in her body, trying so hard to calm herself, not to let her reiatsu flare more than it was already flaring. She was sure that that red-headed fool would surely come to her, yelling about rest and stuff she wasn't really in the mood for right now. She needed her peace badly. Her head leaned to the wood behind her, remembering the last person she saw sitting here in the same way she did now, frowning once again. Yet, somehow, that person, that man, even though he wasn't present at all, shattered every hope she had about her peacefully enjoying her fresh air. What did he do to her? She was…<em>normal<em> before she met him, before he glared at her with those _stupid_ teal orbs, before he…Her hand moved to her lips, remembering clearly what happened on that balcony just few nights ago. _What the hell is he doing to me?_

* * *

><p>Hours and hours of silence. Nothing more that few heavy looks exchanged between the males that were now on the roof top of some old building. It was the same, ever since the night he rearranged the teams, placing himself with that orange-headed fool beside him. Toshiro was feeling more and more resentful towards the substitute shinigami that was now looking ahead, on the lights and houses that stood below them, clearly ignoring him. Just one look in that way made the frown on Toshiro's face so heavy it almost hurt.<br>He knew very well why he felt that way. He knew very well that he had reasons behind it. And he knew very well that he was acting like an immature brat. And…he really didn't care.  
>His hand went through the white straps on his head, while he tried his best to turn his head other way, not to let this man annoy him more than he already did. Oh there was so much in his white head this evening that he could not stand it anymore. He wanted more than anything for a hollow to show, so he could take all his frustration and anger on it. It would make him feel easier for few moments. He felt the burden of his blade on his back and again cursed himself for failing in many things he did this few days. He tried as hardest he could to concentrate on anything but his thoughts, but his mind kept replaying everything like a broken record.<br>What was he actually doing here? Why did he actually go all that way for a person he barely knew? How, for the love of gods, did that petite shinigami managed to make him this concerned about her?  
>He shook his head lightly, from regret and guilt. Somehow he felt, only questioning their friendship or whatever they had, he was betraying her.<br>But, then again, this night was different. The orange-headed shinigami broke their silence for the first time since they started working together, making no move what so ever, just kept looking at the glowing city beneath their feet.

"Why do you even care?" The words were clear and they stung the prodigy like a painful needles, making his head turn to look at the orange-top man beside him. He knew very well what he was asking, on what he was referring. That much was clear to Toshiro.

"Why do you want to know?" He asked almost painfully, returning his look ahead. He felt the substitute stir beside him. _Good_, he was glad he annoyed him.

"She's my friend." Was all the orange-top said looking directly at the white-haired man. Toshiro didn't move though.

"Is she?" He asked it again. A similar question to that on the night Kuchiki Rukia almost lost her life. The words felt bitter and sour in his mouth, just because they held a connection with that bloody night. The substitute moved uncomfortably again.

"Why do you keep asking me that?" His voice was much stronger, and somehow offensive. Toshiro sighed, not saying anything. Ichigo continued. "She is my friend and…" He stopped for a second returning to the light both him and the man beside him now watched. "…I want to know. She's acting different around you, I can see that much."

"I don't see why would I be obligated to say anything to you!" The ice, oh the ice. It was all that this white haired man knew.

"You're not." Those words made Toshiro turn his head to look at the substitute beside him. He's not.

"Hngh." His white canine teeth showing as he fought the urge to smack that orange head as hardest he could. _Alright, the substitute wants to know…then he will_. "Fine. But…" He turned around to look ahead again. "…you don't deserve to know this. You don't deserve the words that are about to come from my mouth. I just want you to know that before I tell you." Toshiro said serious, without any emotion on his face.

"Fine." Ichigo said silently. Toshiro nodded.

"She helped me." He said sternly. Ichigo's eyes widening slowly, as he was fighting a confusion that was appearing in him. "After the war…and everything that happened, she was the only person who was not afraid to come near me." He stopped again, looking ahead and replaying every memory before this mission he could call in that moment. "She's my friend." He said finally lowering his head a little to look at his feet, and that left Ichigo surprised slightly. He kept looking at the Captain beside him and could swear that he saw a mild, almost inexistent, smile on his toned face.

"Friend?" Ichigo said not even aware that the words left his mouth. Toshiro just frowned looking at the substitute beside him. Every further conversation was suddenly interrupted, because of the ringing that came from Toshiro. A call. When he took the phone from his pocket he saw one name flashing on the screen.

"Matsumoto?" He said in a cold and stern voice answering the phone.

"_Captain, we need…_" The voice was breaking on the other side.

"What?"

"_We need backup!_" She said and the phone ended in that moment. He returned the phone quickly in his pocket and turned to face the man beside him.

"Follow me." With that he was gone, Ichigo slightly behind him.

* * *

><p>"What the hell is happening Renji?" She said shoving him with one hand, obviously pissed.<p>

"I don't know what you are talking about Rukia." He said scratching his head nervously.

"Oh don't give me that crap. I heard they requested for a seal break. Don't play dumb with me! What the hell is going on there?"

"I don't-" He tried.

"Listen to me you red-headed fool! Just because they made me take this fucking leave doesn't mean I'm not capable for a fight. The next word that comes from that mouth of yours better be my answer or else I'll kick your ass until you cry." She said pointing one finger in his direction, making sure she pours her reiatsu loud enough so he knows she's not playing games. He swallowed…hard.

"Damn it! Captain Kuchiki will kill me for this one!" He said frowning, but continued when he saw the look she gave him. "Fine." He scratched his head again. "They're outnumbered. And…"

"And what Renji?" She asked angrily.

"I...I just know that they suffered a lot of damage, that's it." Her eyes widened when he finished talking. She stood there for few seconds replaying every worst case scenario in her head, thinking about people that were out there, people she cared about, people she proudly called her friends. And she was stuck here and… "Rukia?" _Fuck it!_

"Tell my Captain that I'm sorry!" She said turning around.

"W-what?" He grabbed her hand angrily and stopped her in her tracks. But when she turned around and he took one look in those violet eyes he knew better than anyone, he let go and forced a smirk to appear on his face. "Sorry, I'm not going to be here long enough for that." Her eyes widened, while he passed her, walking away. "What are you waiting for, let's go damn it!" A wide smile appeared on her face while she ran after him to the Senkaimon gate, gripping the hilt of her sword tighter.

* * *

><p>"MOVE DAMN IT!" Ichigo yelled at the Quincy beside him.<p>

"This is my opponent, find another one!" The Quincy proudly said lifting up his glasses and stretching his bow to prepare himself for another attack. The blue light glowing as he took one look around the place where he stood. The scenery around them was horrible and once again he thanked the gods that they were just out of the city. But still, the damage could be done if they don't hurry. There were at least twenty or even more Adjuchas around them, and then there were Gillian's…what they all were doing here, he wasn't sure. He kept looking in the shinigami direction, waiting for a power change. He knew they requested a seal break, but he also knew it took time for it to be approved. And they weren't doing great. Adjuchas and Gillian's numbers was growing rapidly. The lieutenants were already hurt and that white haired Captain had a cut on his left shoulder. Chad and Ichigo weren't doing better, while Orihime was waiting near for any chance to heal any of them. _I hope they hurry, or else…_

"Any word Matsumoto?" Toshiro said panting for air, while he just defended himself from the last opponent, Gillian, which was laying cut on the ground.

"No sir, they are still working on it." She said quickly before she charged back in her battle.

"Damn it!" He hissed to himself, holding his shoulder longer than he thought he should. It hurt.

"I see you won't last long shinigami trash. Oh well, at least I got something to play with." Toshiro's eyes snapped wide open when he felt the reiatsu standing behind him. He knew it, he felt it before. It was so familiar to him, when did he felt it before? Was this… _Rukia_. He turned around slowly to face the grayish Adjuchas that was grinning uncontrollably, and Toshiro saw there was no sign of cut she personally caused.

"I wouldn't talk so easily if I were you." Toshiro said coldly, piercing the grey Adjuchas with his teal angry…no, madly angry eyes.

"I don't know, that injury seems like it hurts." Adjuchas said pointing his blade at Toshiro's shoulder.

"Don't be so sure yet…" Toshiro said as he charged towards the grey Adjuchas standing few feet away from him. In a seconds their swords clashed, Hyorinmaru glowing in the night light. Toshiro swung the crescent-shaped blade attached to hilt of his sword along with it, tying it around the Adjuchas and swinging him feet's away, not even bothering to freeze him right away.  
>"And I'm just getting started." Toshiro growled, the eyes of Adjuchas flew wide open in confusion of the anger and <em>hate<em> that was pouring from the young white-haired shinigami. The Adjuchas stood up fast, not allowing him to strike him again, and moved few more feet away, panting heavily. Toshiro looked as if he wasn't breathing at all, while he was gripping the hilt of Hyorinmaru tight.

"Oh, I see…" The Adjuchas almost laughed looking in the direction where Toshiro stood. "I know now what this is about." He said and laughed. But before he could say any more he heard the white haired man speak.

"Do not even dare to think that you know anything about this." The Adjuchas eyes grew wide as he watched the white-haired man and his eyes that were glowing bright blue now, before he charged in the air.  
>"Soten ni zase…" The light blue ice appeared on the katana he held in his hands forming a shape of a dragon and before he directed it in the way of the grey Adjuchas, only one word could be heard, as the others stood in their places for those few moments and watched the fury and anger of the white-haired prodigy Hitsugaya Toshiro. "Hyorinmaru!"<p>

"Shit! Wouldn't want to be in the place of that Adjuchas right now." Ikkaku said looking in the direction where the battle was raging.

"Neither would I. He's not beautiful at all." Yumichika said standing around, not really minding the mess they were all in.

"Yeah, great, the weather is changing too. Guess our visibility won't be that great either." Ikkaku said looking at the sky above them, while the dark clouds were forming from the direction Captain Hitsugaya stood and it looked as it was about to go in full storm mode.  
>Near them stood Matsumoto and Hisagi that were in the middle of a fight with few Gillian's and Adjuchas. Matsumoto only shot one glance in her Captain direction, not in the position to go and help him. And well, caring about her life too, because he would probably kill her if he even knew she thought about it.<p>

"That's him!" Hisagi said frozen in his tracks. Matsumoto stopped the attack meant for him and shouted, so he would come to his senses. He muttered a sorry and attacked his opponent again.

"What are you talking about? Who is him?" Matsumoto said flash stepping near the black-haired lieutenant.

"The…Adjuchas Kuchiki and I fought." He said moving fast to continue with his fight.

"W-what? You are telling me that that's the Adjuchas that slashed Kuchiki?" Matsumoto asked with her eyes wide open looking in the direction where her Captain was fighting.

"Yes, that's him." Hisagi said.

"S-shit." She returned her attention to the opponent near her, glancing in the direction where Hisagi stood. "Just keep away from him, far away. Got it?" When he didn't respond she repeated. "Hisagi, do you hear me? Keep far away from him."

"But I can take him now." He said frowning.

"I am not talking about that Adjuchas Hisagi." She said deadly serious and he, after realizing on what and who she referred, nodded once.

* * *

><p>The night air and weather changed quickly, and cold wind started to blow all around them. Orihime stood near the tall tree, her hair flowing intensively around her on the wind, and kept her shield up with all her force, remembering Ishida's words not to take it down at any circumstances. Her arms were clenched in fists and rested on her chest, while she watched one man in particular and the force he gave on his every attack. Her hand stretched forward to catch the small particle of ice that was flowing in the air. She watched it melt in her hands, while she returned her gaze to direction, to the man that was causing the storm around them. Before she knew, enormous breast were around her head and all she heard before they moved was <em>I need to move you<em>.  
>When they stopped she found herself further away, not really even seeing that tree she stood near just few seconds ago. Matsumoto was standing near her, panting hardly.<p>

"I-Is everything okay? Why did we-"

"Listen to me Inoue, do not come near them now." Matsumoto said deadly serious looking in the grey eyes before her. "That's the Adjuchas that almost killed Kuchiki, I can't protect you and fight." She said and Inoue gasped.

"T-that's…the…"

"Yeah, so keep your orange thingy up and try not to come near. The storm already started." She said and flash-stepped in an instant. Orihime nodded to herself and commanded for her shield to come up again.  
>She could still see the battle, but not as good as she did moments ago. The ice that was glowing in that direction helped though. <em>That's the one that hurt Kuchiki-san<em>. Again, she looked at the white-haired man and her eyes softened. The force and anger that came out of that man almost made Orihime cry. His reiatsu could be felt even where she stood, and it was a little heavy. She just kept watching him, understanding every swing that came from him, understanding every hit he received and she almost cursed herself. He could protect, he could defend…all she could do was stand and not be on the way. She didn't knew that Captain very well, but she could sympathize with him. She understood his anger. It's just…she could never do that much for a person she _cared_ for. Tears flowed down her face as she watched the fight, and they burned. They burned her face, and she felt as she failed, not anyone, just herself. Even her shield started to fade as her eyes was pinned to the scene above. The reiatsu kept suffocating her and she wondered how everyone else managed to stand so strong near that white-haired man. It was worse now, because he was in bankai, long ice-blue wings around him, while he glowed with white blue light.

* * *

><p>Ichigo was the one that stood the closest to Hitsugaya, but not even he did come any closer. He was quick in defeating any Gillian's that came near him and as soon as he did he would turn to look at the fight near him. Ishida was near him too, fighting with one Adjuchas and he was cut on several places, but like everyone else it was caused because no one could <em>not<em> look at the battle that changed the weather.

Toshiro was panting hard, while his wings protected him from every Cero that came his way. This Adjuchas was strong, he could feel and see that. He went in his bankai a moment ago, but still…it was hard keeping up with him. The cut on his shoulder was still bleeding, as he could see, so he froze it without thinking about it twice. _That's better_. He just needed little more time until the seal was released. He was sure that Matsumoto would tell him as soon as they approve. _But what's taking this long?_

Matsumoto was thinking about the same thing as she watched her Captain far away. _This is not good. He's angry. Damn it, where's the approval?_

"CAPTAIN!" Her eyes flew wide open at the sight of her Captain falling down. She started flash-stepping the moment she saw it, but was stopped by Adjuchas on the way. She swung her sword screaming towards her Captain, now everyone aware what was happening.

He fell, and he fell hard, his whole body slamming on the ground beneath him. The wings shattered, as he wasn't strong enough anymore to hold his bankai. _Damn seal_. The moment he was aware of the pain he started to move again, trying so hard to stand up, whipping the blood from his face, but the foot stopped him. Only thing he saw was that grey Adjuchas smiling from up, holding him on the ground.

"Stupid piece of shinigami trash…" He said pointing a sword to Toshiro's throat. "I told you, you wouldn't last long enough." He drew blood from Toshiro's throat. "Guess you'll die now just like that shinigami girl I slaughtered!" He said and swung the sword from above. Before it even touched Toshiro, all that he heard was voice of a shinigami he knew very well.

"Guess again." Rukia pierced the Adjuchas from behind and her sword froze him completely. The moment that happened she slashed the ice in pieces. Toshiro's eyes widened at the sight of that petite shinigami standing above him.

"R-Rukia…" The moment she heard him talk she knelt beside him looking all over his body. His haori was torn and he had many cuts on his body and face.

"Can you breathe?" She said not yet meeting his eyes. When she heard a low yes, she took off her gloves immediately.

"What are you doing?" He said looking at her rolling up her sleeves.

"Shut up…" His eyes widened and he saw a small smile flash her face before she added the last part. "…Captain. Keep still!" On that she tore the fabric from his torso, reviling his toned muscles. She placed her hands over him and they started glowing. He smirked.

"Great way to treat your superior Kuchiki." He said smirking and saw her smirk too. "Add that to the fact that you weren't allowed to leave Soul Society…" He tried to lift himself with his hands, but she stopped him, throwing him back on the ground with one hand. And that was the first time he met her eyes. The smile she flashed him never reached them.

"You talk too much…Captain. And stop moving, I need to heal this." She said and returned to his wound.

"Tsk." He allowed his head to fall on the ground while he closed his eyes feeling a cold rush from the spot she was healing. Shivers went through his whole body.

"CAPTAIN?" He felt the vein pop on his forehead when he heard the shout near him. When he opened his eyes he saw Matsumoto standing above Rukia looking at him. And Rukia wasn't moving, just kept concentrated on his open wound.  
>"Kuchiki?" Matsumoto said looking at the girl beside him, every fear evaporating from her face, and a wide grin appeared. "Oh good, your girlfriend saved you!"<p>

"MATSUMOTO!" He shouted, but the same small hand kept him on the ground again, while she continued with healing again. He could see that the wound almost disappeared. He could also see Matsumoto laughing in the background and he frowned, closing his eyes.

"Done." Rukia said standing up and putting on her white gloves, looking at the ground. He stood up too, taking his sword.

"We need to go back Captain, the seal is off!"

* * *

><p>"Matsumoto, are you done?" He said coming down the stairs, while every shinigami from his group stood by her and the gate that started opening.<p>

"Here…it's done." She said tiredly. They all were. The sun already up, and they were up the whole night fighting with those things, not really sure why or for what they came.

"Good. We're going back to report. This is no longer a job for a Cleaning squad." He said passing him and looking at Rukia, who was still keeping her gaze glued to the ground. "Follow me." They did.

Soon enough they all found themselves back in the Soul Society, their mission Captain dismissing them and every one of them went in their rooms or homes to rest.

Except Rukia and Renji. They stayed staring at each other, not sure what to do now.

"You think anyone noticed?"

"Fool, of course they did. We were out all night." She said looking at her red-headed friend.

"Well, no one is after us, so…" He said looking around. "…I guess I'll just go and-" The moment he turned around he bumped into someone right in front of him. He didn't even need to look up, reiatsu said it.

"C-Captain Ku-Kuchiki." He could only mutter that and bow down quickly. Rukia gasped. _What now?_ The eyes of that noble man were set directly on her, while his face didn't gave up much. It never did.

"B-Brother…hello." _Hello? Really Rukia?_ She wanted to slap herself, but instead she just bowed a little.

"Rukia." He said as an acknowledgment to her greeting. "Abarai…" That name was much harsher on his lips. "I expect you will be in my office when I return."

"Yes…yes sir." And with that he was gone. Kuchiki Byakuya returned his look to his sister.

"Brother, I can…I can explain." She said still looking at the ground.

"Then do." His black hair was slightly moving on the morning breeze, while he stood in front of her, proud and gracious like always. Not that she noticed, her eyes never left the ground.

"I…well, I…" _What?_ Whatever she says now it won't be enough. "I-"

"I called her back." Her eyes snapped open when she heard the voice and felt the reiatsu right behind her. Byakuya's eyes moved to the person behind her too. She felt the fabric of his haori on her shoulder as he passed her and stood almost in front of her, in front of Captain Kuchiki Byakuya.

"Captain Hitsugaya?" Byakuya questioned.

"I am allowed to do that, am I not?" He said. "This was my mission. I do apologize for not informing you though." He stood as stern and serious as the black-haired man before him. Byakuya probably didn't buy that, as Rukia thought, but it was a valid explanation…at that moment.

"I see." And he just nodded and walked away, without any word. But he shot a glare at Rukia, and she was sure this was not the end of it. The white-haired Captain was still standing before her, his back right in her hand reach. She felt the need to touch him, but fought the _stupid_ urge.

"I felt his reiatsu, so I thought-"

"Thank you." She said quickly.

"Stupid." Her eyes shot wide open as he turned to face her. "Don't thank me, I should be the one to thank you for what you did last night." Finally, she was looking at him…_finally_. He missed those eyes. "Although, I still want to know what possessed you to go back in _that_ condition." He said more harshly. And…she frowned.

"I'm fine. Why does everyone keep talking about me like I can't walk? I'm fine, look. And I didn't need that fucking leave." His eyes grew wide as he kept looking at her. She basically exploded. "And I had to come. Nobody would tell me anything. I had to force it out from Abarai and that damn fool was tougher then I thought. And it's not like I didn't try to get a valid permission. I did, but then my Captain told me someone asked him to keep me here. I had to go back. What if something happened to you down there, I would-" And she stopped herself right there, panting hard, realizing she just snapped. He was still looking at her, his shock passing.

"You would?" He asked, very interested in the end of that sentence. Why not? The Kuchiki girl was finally eased around him.

"I would…" She was once again looking at the ground. "I would never forgive myself."

"You think I can't take care of myself?" She looked up, a frown on her face again.

"You almost died there, damn it. He held that sword right beneath your neck. How can you say you could take care of yourself?" She was clearly shaken, he could see that much. "And the cuts, and slashes…and you wouldn't even hold still." He kept looking at her violet eyes that were on him for one second then on the ground and that went in circle. "If something worse happened, my kido wouldn't heal you in ti-"

"Why do you care that much?" Her violet eyes grew wide.

"You…you're my friend, of-"

"Don't lie to me Kuchiki." He said and took one step forward. He stopped right in front of her, as close as he could. "What am I to you?" His voice was low and husky, she knew that one already.

"Frie-"

"Really?" He cupped her chin and lifter her head softly to look directly at his teal eyes. She trembled, but didn't move.  
>"Tell me then…" He said moving closer to her face, to her lips. "…do you feel like this when any <em>friend<em> is near?" She could feel his breath on her lips. "Don't lie to me Rukia. I am simply asking, what am I to you?" She felt shivers going down her spine every time his words clashed on her lips. She could smell his white hair and feel the heat that emitted from his skin. The hand on her face felt as it was burning. She could not take this anymore. In that moment her hand gripped his haori and pulled. Their lips crashed harshly this time. He was surprised for a whole second, before he surrendered to the touches she gave him. Toshiro pulled her even closer with his hand on her back, while Rukia gripped his hair, the other hand still on his chest. Who was she laying? He felt right. Toshiro tilted her head with the hand on her face, deepening the kiss, that was much stronger and heated this time. They waited for too long. He waited to touch her for too long.  
>Rukia felt the heat between her thighs getting stronger every time she felt his tongue caress hers. She almost lost it when he bit her lip, soothing the bite with his tongue after. He broke the kiss slowly, allowing them some much needed air, but they haven't moved. His forehead was leaned on hers, while their pant's of breath collided with one another. Her eyes opened to meet the teal before her. The teal was half-lidded, not doing much better than her. Who was she lying? Herself, obviously.<p>

* * *

><p>He went in his office just to find Matsumoto laying on the sofa, asleep. Her snoring tore the silence in the room, while he just sat behind his table. He didn't mind that this morning though. He would probably withstand her drunken ass right now too.<p>

_Toshiro pulled her even closer with his hand on her back, while Rukia gripped his hair, the other hand still on his chest. He tilted her head with the hand on her face, deepening the kiss, which was much stronger and heated this time. They waited for too long. He waited to touch her for too long. _

Finally…finally, he had her. Her eyes, her mouth, her touch…she was his now. And she didn't run. He could still feel her reiatsu around him, her scent, her touch. Kuchiki Rukia belonged to him and-

"Oi Captain, what are you doing?" Yeah, he was not that far with Kuchiki girl to be immune to the woman on his sofa.

"Well, I am _not_ sleeping." He said and started to do his paperwork, ignoring the blond-haired woman that sat up, still looking at him. "When do you plan on doing you paperwork Matsumoto? The Captain-Commander said he needed every information till-"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah…I'm starting now." She said as she dumped carelessly the papers in front of her. "Where were you?"

"That's none of your business, start working." He said scribbling something on the piece of paper in front of him.

_The way she kept looking at him, made him kiss her again. It was just fair, she pulled first. She didn't complain though. The second kiss was much lighter and he kept biting her lower lip which made her sigh uncontrollably every time. He would soothe it with his tongue after. She just felt great. He felt his body tense every time her grip in his hair tightened. And that arm on his chest, that pulled his haori, wasn't helping at all._

"You went back for Kuchiki girl, weren't you?" Matsumoto said grinning. "I felt that reiatsu too, you know, and-"

"Matsumoto." _Oh for the love of gods, does this woman ever stop?_ He needed some peace, he needed his thoughts. "Start working…now." He pinched the bridge of his nose, to calm himself. He heard her letting out a deep breath.

"Fine, fine."

* * *

><p>"Yeah, yeah." The dark-haired kid watched her numb for few moments before he nodded and went back to the training ground. She didn't punish him? Hell, he would not complain about that!<p>

Rukia sat on the ground, her brush tucked on her right ear, and she held one piece of paper in her hands, that was there long forgotten.

_He traced her lips with his thumb, that felt rough compared to his lips that were just kissing her. But strangely, it was only making her want him more. It was quite sensual, the way he looked at her lips and followed his thumb. When the second kiss came, that she already saw was inevitable, she couldn't stop herself from pulling his haori. She_ needed_ more contact. _

"Lieutenant Kuchiki, we are done with warming up. S-Should we proceed with the practice?"

"Huh?" The kid blinked few times, before he spoke again.

"T-The practice…should we-"

"Oh, yeah, right. Okay! I'll be right there with you!" She said coming to her senses. _Damn it, I'm on training grounds. I need to focus on my work…now!_ She stood up quickly, dusting off her clothes, as she went to join them. _Okay, practice…this will take my mind of him_.

"Okay, you…" She said pointing a finger to one shinigami that was _somehow_ already taller than her. "Spar with me, and the others just split in groups." They all nodded and the tall blonde boy came near her. "Alright, let's see what you got!" She said and their swords clashed.

* * *

><p>"Did he tell you anything else?" The Quincy asked. The orange-top sighed.<p>

"For the third time no! He just told me they'll be back, probably with different crew and that they're sending Ikkaku and Yumichika just in case something else happens till then. Got it now?"

"Yes, I know that already, I was simply asking if you can recall anything else beside that Kurosaki."

"No." He said brushing him off. Ishida frowned lifting his glasses up.

"Ichigo, they're here." Chad said motioning towards the two shinigami that were walking to them.

* * *

><p>"I can't go into shikai with you guys." She said standing before her disappointed recruits. "I'm afraid I could hurt you." The faces of the her recruits fell to the ground, trying hard to hide their disappointment. Rukia took a deep breath, but it stopped in her throat the moment she felt someone was standing behind her.<p>

"Maybe I can help with that?" _Oh fuck!_ Her whole body froze at the sound of his voice. She turned around slowly and smiled watching him coming her way. His haori flew around him in the wind, along with his white hair.

"I don't know about that Ca-"

"Are you afraid, _lieutenant_ _Kuchiki_?" He said stopping just few feet away from her. She smirked.

"Never."

"Alright then, let's show them your dances." He said unsheathing his sword, she nodded and did that too, while they moved away from the crowd that followed them with their eyes eager to see two ice wilders sparing.

"Mae, Sode no Shirayuki!" She said that, turning her sword clock-vise, just like always, and it turned pure white, with one long ribbon appearing on the hilt. Rush of cold air hugging everyone that stood near. Toshiro watched it carefully, still not accustomed to its beauty. The recruits all gasped and some of them even clapped from excitement. They took few moments to look at each other, before they both smirked and charged.  
>The swords clashed, sound of a metal piercing the silence that overcome their surroundings as soon as everyone saw that the sparring began. Few gasps could be heard as they pushed from each other allowing themselves some space for another attack. He swung his sword first, that was immediately met by hers, drops of sweat already appearing on her skin. Their bodies were close now, as they held their swords locked, feeling the heat from each other's skin. They took their time, standing like that. Toshiro was looking directly at violet eyes before him, while she pushed him back with all her force to get ready for another attack. He smirked when he saw her panting hard.<p>

"Done already, _Kuchiki_? He saw a light frown appearing on her face, before her lips went into a smirk.

"Hah, not even near _Captain_!" As she said that she rushed in his direction and for the next few minutes all that those recruits could hear was metal clashing over and over. Every time they came closer their breaths would become heavier. The drops of sweat appeared on Toshiro's skin too, but they weren't from exhaustion…at all. First, he would look directly at her eyes, but as the time past and she came closer and closer over and over, his gaze would slightly fell to her pink lips, her bare neck and eventually to the rest of her body. Seeing that only made Rukia breathing heavier. The heat that was mixing between them wasn't helping at all. And he could not take it anymore.  
>The next hit she threw he avoided it, appearing behind her thanks to the flash step and swinging her down on the ground. His one hand was holding the hand in which she held her sword, while his other was placed directly under her chin, on her bare neck. His sword already in its holder, he looked down, so close to her, their noses almost touching, while Rukia's breathing accelerated. If it weren't for the shouts and claps that came from their recruits he would not made his way up, but that brought him back. He stood up quickly and offered her a hand.<br>This was definitely more than just a spar. Luckily, those recruits were oblivious enough not to acknowledge their flushed faces and heavy breathing as anything else than exhaustion. It _could be_ just because they spared. She took his hand, both of them letting each other go as soon as they could, not really having enough strength.

* * *

><p><em>Shower. Shower. Shower. Shower. <em>That's all he tried to think about while he rushed through the halls of his division, his appointment with Ukitake that he needed to attend long forgotten. He did not need that spar right now…in the middle of his work hours. But he just couldn't resist, seeing her standing there. The opportunity was too good to pass.

"Captain?" He heard Matsumoto's voice behind him.

"Don't have time." Was all he mumbled and in that moment he decided not to risk it and flash-stepped to his room. _Shower._


	9. The Man Behind the Dragon

**A/N: **Oh you can't even begin to imagine how happy I am that I'm back! Can't wait to hear from you guys and finally, FINALLY, start reading all HitsuRuki fics I missed. I got sick. And wasn't in the condition to do anything at all. Luckily I'm much, much better now so we can continue! I hope you missed me!  
>Now... New chapter! I had to sort out few things with this one, so compared to that last one it doesn't have so much action. Still, I hope you'll like it!<br>Thank you for your support! I really like hearing from you, it makes me happy to know that you like this story!

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Bleach!

* * *

><p><strong>Together Alone<strong>

_The Man Behind the Dragon_

* * *

><p>The sun peeked through the curtains as the man stirred in his bed growling. It was already morning. He tried to hide under his sheets, protecting himself from the suns light, but even though he could run from those rays, his conscience was still there. He needed to get up and work.<p>

"Damn it!" Toshiro hissed getting up slowly, feeling the pain and exhaustion that he suffered last two days. The cuts from the battle could still be seen on his bare tanned torso as he walked to the bathroom, desperate for some cold water to wake him up. It was already morning. And he didn't get much rest. Night before last one he was awake, fighting, and didn't get to sleep until he finished the paperwork he delivered to Captain-Commander Yamamoto yesterday. He just prayed to gods that Matsumoto did the same as cold water washed his tired face, bringing a little color to his paler cheeks.

His shihakusho and haori waited neatly folded on the chair by his desk and he hurried to wear them, placing Hyorinmaru in the holder, and getting on his way. They'll probably get the meeting notice today, if Captain-Commander reviews all those papers in time. Which he probably will. Toshiro was already prepared to expect a hell butterfly sometime in the day. The team will be different though. He was sure of that.

The sun blinded him once again as he exited his room and walked the open halls of 10th division nodding to some shinigami that passed and greeted him very formally. His usual frown could be visible the moment he set foot in those halls. He had a lot of work to do. This mission didn't go as he planned and he knew very well that he made a lot mistakes. Lives of many in group were placed in danger too many times. More than he planned, at least. _Maybe my organization wasn't very good this time_, he thought running a hand through his hair, nearing his office.

"Good morning sir!" She practically sang it, lying lazily on the office sofa. _Headache. Great._ Well, at least she was on time for once. _Wait…_

"Matsumoto, did you sleep here?" He said raising one eyebrow, still standing at his office door. When he saw the grimace on her face, he just sighed and walked to his table. _Of course she did._

"It's because of those papers Captain! I was working very late, no wonder-" She whined.

"I don't care." He pinched the bridge of his nose, while his whole head pulsated. And one look at the paperwork on his desk didn't help either. He missed a lot of work, as usual, because of that mission. And well, speaking of _tha_t mission…not everything was as bad as it sounded and Toshiro smirked already writing something on the paper in front of him.

"I'll go get us something to eat." Matsumoto said dragging herself across the office, not really enjoying waking up this early in the morning. He ignored her…once again.

Today will be one long, long day. He leaned in his hands that were supporting themselves on his desk, resting his forehead in them, trying to fight off a headache and to call up some much needed moments. He took a deep breath, relaxing; bathing in the pictures he needed and called for. He had to see her today. Since that spar he didn't have time to seek her. He was still unsure if he even will. _Damn paperwork!_

Light tap on his office door brought him back and he lifted his head to find one Captain standing there, smiling gently.

"Ukitake?" _Fuck!_ The moment he saw the older man he wanted to slap himself. He forgot about that meeting he was supposed to attend yesterday.

"Good morning Captain Hitsugaya." The man calmly said and entered his office. Hearing his last name roll of the tongue of this man he knew that this was no candy-related business. Toshiro ran his hand trough his white hair once again, trying to regain focus and his composure. "I came to see if everything is all right with you. You didn't come yesterday." The man said sitting on the chair in front of Toshiro's table. "I felt your reiatsu nearing, but-"

"Yes, I am sorry about that. Something came up." Yes, indeed, something came up. "What did you want to talk about?" Toshiro said, putting away the papers in front of him, while the smile vanished from that older Captain.

* * *

><p>"Shit." The moment she tried to move from the position she was in in her bed her whole body rejected it and she could feel a sharp pain flowing fast. This was not what she was expecting to feel first thing in the morning and tiredly she collapsed back on the bed behind her. Closing her eyes she allowed her whole body to relax. She had to get up or else… "Tsk, those fools won't let me see the end of it." She mumbled to herself, frowning.<br>After few failed attempts, she finally succeeded and went straight to bathroom to freshen up. Okay, she was not stupid. This was bad. Every muscle she knew she had hurt and she was barely moving, feeling sharp pain in the area where she was stabbed just few days ago. But…that was not on her mind right now, not even close. She felt heat rise on her cheeks the moment she allowed her brain to replay every detail from yesterday and she even caught herself smiling for…nothing really. This will be one long day.

It took her more time than she predicted to get ready and she hurried herself through the halls of 13th division. If she gets late they'll surely question why. Not going to let that happen.

"Is Captain here?" Standing near his empty room, she saw Kiyone and Sentaro coming her way, carrying pile of papers and she was sure they were arguing.

"Oh, hey Rukia." Kiyone said, small smile appearing on her face. She was sure now, she interrupted an argument. "No, Captain Ukitake went to have a meeting with 10th division Captain." She said and Rukia could feel her cheeks heat up once again.

"Are you okay?" Sentaro asked concerned, looking at petite raven-head girl.

"Huh? Oh, yeah. I'm fine." She said quickly, trying to act natural. "Then, when will he be back?"

"Probably soon. Do you need something?"

"Oh, no. I was just…I wanted to know if there are any information about what's happening." She said looking at wooden floor in thought. "But never mind, I'll just come back later. I have to finish my paperwork anyway."

Something was happening definitely. That or her Captain just wanted to mess with 10th division Captain. _Oh, no Rukia…you have a lot of work to do_, she thought quickly shaking her head to remove any memory that would mess her up and make her smile. As if that was a bad thing…

"Oh fucking hell woman. Somebody needs to tie you down." She turned around and saw pissed off Renji walking her way and waving his hands uncontrollably. _Not again._ "I get why you left yesterday and alright, I followed, but you need to lie down already." She sighed, looking at the pineapple in front of her. _He just worries too much._ "I don't think your Captain would be very happy about this and don't get me started about Captain Kuchiki. He-"

"RENJI!" She yelled, causing him to stop, to _shut his annoying mouth_ as she thought in her mind. She didn't even had enough strength to explain to him that her Captain approved for her to start working again. After what happened yesterday he was probably convinced that she can come back.  
>"Instead of worrying about my problems, you should start worrying what will happen to your sorry ass if you don't get back to work." She crossed her arms and lifted her head a little, just to annoy him more. "We Kuchiki's don't like slack offs."<p>

"W-wha-"

"So, move along and work. If you annoy me any more I'll personally go to brother and tell him all about your little walks. And…" She smirked, placing her index finger to her chin, as if in deep thought. "I don't think he'll be very forgiving after what happened yesterday."

"You wouldn't-"

"Try me." Crossing her arms once again and looking at her childhood friend, she challenged him. And…

"Damn you." He lost. Rukia sighed again, after red-head walked away, feeling tired. She would never really betray Renji, but she wasn't really in the mood for his lecture, so she decided to bluff. Luckily, it worked.

And the day passed really quickly for her. Most of the time she was on the training grounds with recruits and if she wasn't there she was then doing paperwork. That was a lot of work. Every paper that she left before she went to her mission was still waiting for her in the office, plus all the new ones that were piling up while she was absent… _a lot_ of work.  
>Her Captain didn't come back. She started to get worried around noon; he was supposed to be in his office, or at least in his bed. But there was no sign of him. The two third-seats didn't know a thing, and Rukia decided to stop asking them, because she was afraid they would freak out. And if that happened… who knew what would happen. So she focused on her work, thinking that would make time pass quickly and restrain her mind. The last part didn't work very well. She wasn't worried just about one white-haired man. Her Captain was in fact meeting the other one, and that other one couldn't be seen anywhere. She tried to focus on his reiatsu, but failed to find it. It was weird. Before this, if she thinks about it, he was always somewhere near. But she failed to notice that, probably due to her nature of not really giving a damn what other people do. And now, she realized how strange it was not looking at his white hair while he passed through 13th division, always in some business and deep thought. Even if she greeted him he would just nod and mumble something, not even looking her way. Actually, he never looked at her. At least not before everything that happened recently. Not like she minded that. She was actually pleased that there are still people in Soul Society that didn't give a damn about her being Kuchiki.<br>The point was, she was worried and she needed the information. And if it was anyone else in this situation, they would probably freak out, but…that Kuchiki side wouldn't let her. She had…things to do. And they weren't doing themselves on their own. But then again, she really wasn't doing much either. She would write something for about half an hour and then space out. And most of the time in recruits practice she wasn't even sure what was going on. Hopefully those recruits didn't notice.

_He isn't avoiding me, is he?_ She was walking down the halls of her own division, slowly nearing her room. She needed her bed and sleep. Her whole body screamed in pain. She shook her head angrily, not really in the mood to act like a hormonal high school girl now. That was a mistake. As soon as she moved her head she felt a severe pain in her neck.

"Argh." Rukia immediately stopped, near her room, trying to gain enough courage to move her head. She could feel her whole neck stiffened, so she moved one hand to regain any movement and to ease the pain. "Damn it." This day just wasn't working out for Kuchiki Rukia.  
>She tried to calm herself as her hand fell back down and she took one deep breath, but she failed to exhale it because Rukia felt cold hands on her back, two thumbs placed on the back of her neck. She tried to jump from surprise, but when she heard the voice of the person behind her, air left her lungs and she slightly relaxed.<p>

"Calm down." Husky, deep voice said, and she felt his breath on the back of her neck. "It's me."

"D-damn it, you scared me to death." He heard small amount of anger in her voice, and her body stiffened again, so he smirked, as her scent washed him.

"Sorry. That wasn't my intention." Now she relaxed completely, surrendering to his touch as he massaged the back of her neck, his voice calm and reassuring.

"Next time at least flare some reiatsu." Rukia said softly, closing her eyes. "You're lucky, I could have punched you." She said, smirking.

"Well…" He moved a little closer to her back, still massaging her neck. "You could have tried."

"Oh I would punch you, don't even doubt that." Rukia felt larger amount of breath hitting her skin, so she assumed he laughed, or something similar to that. She couldn't really tell, she was…distracted. After few seconds of silence Toshiro spoke again, this time little more serious, but didn't stop his hands movement, while Rukia relaxed under his touch, feeling the pain leaving her system.

"Now tell me, why do you keep ignoring everyone's advices and continue walking around like this?" She could feel his voice stricter now, but still soft enough for her to read concern in it. She sighed.

"I'm fine. Just work, that's all." The moment her sentence ended he twirled her around in half circle to face him. She froze for a moment seeing his teal eyes, and felt like it was long time since she last saw them. And Toshiro tried to frown, but the moment their eyes locked he failed and his expression softened. She was…_beautiful_. Even with those black circles he saw and wanted to warn her about, she still looked…really beautiful. His breath stood in his throat.

"Tsk. Stubborn girl." He cupped her face, while his other hand moved to her back and pulled her closer. She smiled, but before she could respond or say anything he leaned down and kissed her. Rukia closed her eyes and welcomed his soft lips. This time kiss didn't deepen, because Toshiro lifted his head and their eyes locked once again. "I'm sorry I didn't come earlier, I had a lot of work to finish…and then Ukitake came…." He said quietly and Rukia felt her brain working again…finally!

"Yes, what is exactly happening? I wanted to speak with my Captain today, but he never returned to his office…or room." She said more seriously now and Toshiro frowned a little. "Is he alright?"

"Who? Ukitake?" She nodded. "He's fine. Probably had a lot of work to do as well…" Before she could ask him a question he was sure was coming he spoke again. "I can't tell you anything else. At least not yet. Just that they'll pick teams tomorrow." And that earned him a deep, dark frown.

"Fine." Was her response. She wasn't really happy about this, but he knew that she had enough of sense to understand that she'll just have to wait till tomorrow.

"Oh and…I forgot to tell you something else." He said smirking and cupping her face.

"What?" Rukia said confused. And he just leaned down and kissed her again. She blushed feeling his soft lips on hers again. The gentle kiss quickly turned into a passionate one as he pulled her even closer, their bodies clashing and that made Rukia quietly and uncontrollably moan. That was music for his ears and he titled her head, deepening the kiss as soon as she let him. They were still standing in the middle of the 13th division halls, but that really wasn't a problem here. Well, it should have been, because someone could have passed those same halls and she wasn't really sure if the idea of gossip about them spreading around Soul Society was the best way to let everyone know. Were they even supposed to let everyone know? But that wasn't important now. The thing was…she knew, as well as he did, that her room was just few steps away and her blush only got worse. She could not believe what she was thinking of right that moment. He broke the kiss moments after her mind-rant and moved to her neck. If she was planning to slow things down, ask questions or anything at all, then this wasn't really a great way to start. His open kisses made her breathing accelerate and few soft moans left her lips.  
>Toshiro smirked, still following the soft skin on her neck, inhaling her scent. He felt as he waited a lifetime for this, for her touch, scent, taste. And that was strange…really strange. Every moan that left her lips made him want her even more. Dark, lustful thoughts filled his mind, making it harder for him to control himself. Almost impossible. Her one hand was clenching his haori, just like yesterday. <em>She tends to do that<em>, he noted, probably trying to regain her control too. He moved to her face once again, then stopping his movements, and their eyes locked. Her cheeks were really red, eyes half-lidded and lips partly open, as if trying to inhale more much needed air. Gods only knew how he looked to her.

"You should…go… rest." His thumb traced her collar bone, his eyes following it. He had to stop himself and gain some control over his lustful thoughts. Toshiro really didn't want to scare her away now. Just yesterday he managed to come close to her, without her running away after it.

"I'm not tired." His eyes widened slightly and he looked up to meet hers. Her hand moved to his white hair and she ran it through, smiling softly. He relaxed in her touch, closing his eyes, deep, heavy breath escaping his lips.

"You should anyway. You've been through a lot lately." His voice was almost a whisper and she heard that low husky tone in it. His jaw was set firm, almost shut too tight, while his whole body stiffened immediately. And that's when she saw it…he was trying to control himself too. Her hand moved to his face, while he still had his eyes closed, trying to breath evenly…hell, just trying to breathe. She took that time to examine him more, as moon casted a soft light on him. His skin was few tones darker than hers, lines of his jaw almost perfect, while that silvery-white hair just fit to his whole appearance. He was really handsome…and she almost giggled to her own choice of words. Her thumb started to cares his lover lip and that made him open his eyes slowly, looking at her. _And then there are those…How can anyone have those eyes? They are…breathtaking._

"What did you do to me?" Her voice was a whisper, soft, almost absent-like whisper. That question was haunting her ever since he came close. He took her hand from his face, not breaking their look and smirked.

"I think I should ask you that same question." She smiled and he leaned down and rested his own forehead against hers, closing his eyes again and she did the same. "You should really go now. It's late and…it's late." Ending that with _and I'm afraid if you don't I might lose any control that I have left and take you right here_ was not really a great plan. That much he figured out.

"Alright." She said as she straightened herself taking one short breath in.

* * *

><p>Many wouldn't understand the desire he held in him. Many wouldn't dream that he was even capable for that emotion. Many couldn't know or comprehend the meaning behind his dark stare. There was something all of them knew about him and that was how protective he could get. But they weren't even close to understanding it. He knew that that was his problem, mental problem. There was not a single cell in his body that denied that, but that was part of him for a long time now and so he almost forgot to consider it as a bad thing. Most of his life he was alone, locked from every warmer emotion. He lived with that ice for too long. Sometimes there was a hint of fire around him and those were so rare moments that he learned to cherish, save and have it all for himself. But as the time passed those moments came much less than they once did. And until recently he was starting to think he was becoming numb, that maybe he didn't care as much as he did. And that maybe he lost the ability all together. Somehow he felt he was only capable of anger and rage at that point. But oh how wrong was he…<p>

"What is this?"

"Oh hello to you too Captain Hitsugaya."

"Cut the formalities Ukitake, I'm asking you…what is this?" The paper that he was holding was roughly slammed to older man's table, while that older man looked up, slightly confused. Ukitake took the paper and scanned the names.

"This is a list of names for new team." He said bluntly.

"Yes, I know that." Hitsugaya was losing his temper, there was no need in looking at him, the cold air was proof itself. "I am asking you what's the meaning of it?"

"Meaning?" Ukitake took one more look on the paper in front of him and that only confused him more. "I don't see-"

"Kuchiki Rukia is on it." Hitsugaya said, his anger getting the best of him. The older Captain lifted his head to look at him. Ukitake's eyes narrowed slightly, one eyebrow up, as if he wasn't sure what that meant.

"Yes, and?" But his voice gave a hint of amusement.

"What _yes, and_? She was on my Cleaning team and almost died few days ago. Who the hell placed her there again?"

"Are you saying her abilities are not suited for this mission Captain Hitsugaya?" Ukitake was serious, or at least tried to be.

"Wha-? No. That's not… Hngh." Younger Captain pinched the bridge of his nose, taking one deep breath. He had to calm himself. Meanwhile, smile on Ukitake's face appeared again. "I am simply asking who placed her there. If I'm not wrong, she is still on that leave."

"I was the one that wrote her name on there. And yes, she was on _that_ leave, but I evaluated that and came to conclusion that she is well enough to proceed." Ukitake said, acting out a formal voice. "Why are you so concerned Captain Hitsugaya?" And at that moment Toshiro's brain started to function again, up until recently clouded with anger. _Why are you so concerned Captain Hitsugaya?_ The question repeated itself in his mind, but he just stood there. What does he say now? Is he supposed to tell Ukitake about them? Them? What are they? Together, couple, dating? Dating? That was more a human thing. Right? How is he supposed to put that in words? "Captain?" The voice of _her_ Captain brought him back.

"I…umm…" He was dumbstruck for few seconds, before he cleared his throat. "I feel obligated, because I was responsible for that mission and everything that happened there."

"Oh, so you feel responsible for Rukia?" When he didn't get an answer from white-haired prodigy Ukitake just smiled and continued. "I can assure you Captain that my lieutenant is capable for these kinds of missions."

"I never said that she wasn't. I simply-"

"But…" Ukitake interrupted him, raising his index finger. "…since you feel the obligation to question this, I'll entrust her in your care." Toshiro kept staring at him. _What is it with this man?_ "If that's alright with you, of course." Gentle, almost amused, smile appeared on Ukitake's face.

"Tsk. Fine." If he wanted to act neutral, to hide what he had with Kuchiki girl for reasons he didn't even know, then this was his first mistake. Well, if you don't count that scene from moments ago. Because when did Captain Hitsugaya Toshiro accept something so easily before? Especially if that something was taking care of another subordinate, Kuchiki princess, how they once called her. Unless it suited him completely… His face showed attempt of annoyance, but Ukitake smiled. Knowing this young man for long as he did, he could clearly read concern under it.  
>Not that he wasn't glad. He was. Even though that was a negative emotion, Ukitake was glad he at least cared enough to have it. This Hitsugaya Toshiro was much different than the one he met years before. Maybe he didn't know how to express himself like many did, and maybe he acted too harshly sometimes, Ukitake was still glad that something, or better yet someone, affected him that much. Why? He knew he wouldn't hear the answer from white-haired man now. But he'll be watching<em> them<em>, in that he was sure.

"Good. Do you need anything else Captain?" Gentle voice of 13th division Captain filled the room, while he flashed a smile to the man standing before him, anger slowly evaporating from this mans features.

"No." Toshiro just turned and left the 13th division offices. Was that rude? No, if you knew that young Captain as well as Ukitake did.

"Interesting." Ukitake mumbled to himself, contented smile on his face. "Kiyone, Senataro…" The two appeared in few seconds before his office, as if they just waited to be called. "Please call Rukia. Tell her I need to speak with her." Few energetic _yes sirs_ could be heard, as the two third-seats left his office in a hurry to find raven-head girl.

* * *

><p>Night sky was amazing that evening, if you ask Kuchiki Rukia. The whole day was. First the pain she felt was much less bothering that evening and she was relaxed enough to look at stars that decorated the night sky above her and she felt the remains of stress leaving her body. Second, she got the mission. Again. Two missions in a row was really something for any shinigami and she grinned, letting the cool wind wash her face. Although her Captain didn't explain anything at all. That was the only thing that was bothering her. It could be because he himself didn't know much or he just wasn't allowed to tell. She leaned to that second option, because one other Captain was too secretive about information. Frown appeared on her face. This was serious, she could tell. No meeting was called and even she didn't know the names on that list. <em>One week from now and I'll know.<em>  
>But there was something else on her mind too, so she jumped from the tree she was on and dusted off her clothes. There was no sign of him. No white hair, no icy reiatsu. Nothing. She'll find him.<p>

Minutes later she found herself standing before the 10th division building, looking at one door in particular. If someone told her months ago that she'll chicken out and turn around, not having enough courage to face this man…well, any man, she was sure she would laugh. But she did. So she turned around to leave. Well, she tried.

"You do know that I sensed your reiatsu fifteen minutes ago?" She stopped, hearing the voice behind her back, her eyes widening slightly, but soon after that small smile appeared on her face. "I just wanted to know for how long you were planning on staying there." She could feel amusement in his voice. Two can play that game…

"Well…" She said and turned to look at him over her shoulder. "I hope you had fun." She said, smirking and took one step away.

"Wha-" Toshiro's eyes widened as soon as he saw her taking that one step, but he reacted almost immediately and flash stepped in front of that petite shinigami girl, stopping her in her tracks. The air from his flash step washed her and his breath stopped in his throat once again when he saw the raven locks dancing, slightly hiding those violet eyes he knew very well now. "Where do you think you're going?" He said smirking. She returned the expression.

"I entertained you. My job is done here." Rukia said smirking and tried to move aside from him, but he stopped her again.

"Who said I was entertained?"

"You looked that way." She grinned evilly. "And besides, I wouldn't want to bother 10th division Captain in the middle of his work." She expected him to smile, smirk, something, but instead a deep frown appeared on his face. "What?" She said bluntly. He turned his head a little, looking somewhere else and she just stared at him, not really sure what just happened. "Did I-"

"You never said it. Not once." His voice was a bit stiff, and it sounded as if he was offended.

"Huh?" Rukia was dumbstruck. "Said what?" She could see he was struggling to let out whatever he wanted so she let him. And then he turned again to look directly at her. She almost jumped from the look he gave her.

"My name, Rukia." _Name? His name? What?_ Her brain worked in full mode, probably triggered by her own first name rolling from his tongue. He did that every time. Suddenly he cupped her face again. "You keep calling me Captain or even worse…sir." He said looking directly in her violets. She was slightly confused. "And I believe we are already passed that point." The softness returned in her eyes from the sight of a man before her and she smiled.

"Idiot."


	10. Only Mine

**A/N: **Yes, I'm that fast!  
>But... this chapter is still a build up. I had to let them get to know each other more. Things are going to get <em>shaky<em>! That's all on that subject(insert evil laugh).  
>Then again, this is still really <em>important<em> for their relationship and I hope you'll enjoy reading it. It's practically all about them and them only! And something else... I love Matsumoto. She is golden in this chapter!  
>And thank you for your wonderful words. I know I tend to bore you with this, but I really, really appreciate your support!<p>

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Bleach!

* * *

><p><strong>Together Alone<strong>

_Only Mine_

* * *

><p>Toshiro's eyes widened the moment her words reached him. He stared at petite shinigami in front of him and could see her smiling softly. It wasn't an insult, that much he could read. Soft expression she held before him told him that. He didn't move, just kept staring at her and saw her sigh amusingly, lowering her head a little.<p>

"You make it sound as if I didn't want to." Her voice was as soft as her eyes, which he saw second ago, but were now covered in raven locks. They were standing in front of his division building, the moon only light present. When he saw that she wasn't moving, he lifted her head to look at her eyes. The sight before him made him smile. It wasn't a smirk, or devilish smile…it was an honest, soft smile, which left Rukia surprised. With his other hand he removed pieces of hair from her face as soft as he could.

"I really am an idiot." That made Rukia grin, and he could read _I told you so_ under it. He lowered his head and kissed her for the first time that night. And Rukia was sure it would leave her awake for most of the night. His soft lips that were dancing with her own, his hand on her cheeks, his scent and touch was overwhelming for her. And the kiss… The moment they tasted each other she felt weakness in her knees and had a strange urge to pull him closer, but luckily for her he did that seconds after she considered it. She felt wind on her skin, cold, icy wind, which made the kiss only hotter than it already was. Heat was rising in her body, making her shiver because of the colder air around her, but somehow…it wasn't cold at all. He felt that, she was sure because he slowly broke the kiss, and spoke once again.

"Are you cold?" Her eyes were still closed and she let out a deep breath. Truth to be told, she wasn't in the condition to speak, but knew she had to. She wondered if he even knew what he was doing to her right now. But she was silent for more than she thought she should be and the next thing she felt was two arms around her pulling her closer. Rukia opened her eyes, inhaling his scent, and rested her head on his chest. He buried his head in her hair and closed his eyes. That usual silence hugged them for few moments, before Toshiro spoke again, resting his chin on her head.  
>"That night I found you in the woods…" His voice was a little distant and Rukia remained quiet in his embrace. "…when you told me that something made Sode no Shirayuki sad…that loneliness made her sad..." She felt his grip around her become tighter. "I won't question who was responsible for that, but…" That part of his sentence was rougher, she could sense it, but as soon he continued that softness returned. "I told you back then I wouldn't let you fight it alone and now…I want you to know that I will make sure you never feel it again."<p>

He finished and buried his head in her hair again, taking one deep breath in. She wanted to say something, to thank him, tell him how that made her feel, but she could not find the words. So she put her arms around him, which were up until then hanging down her sides, and pulled him even closer, making her own grip as tight as his was.  
>But Toshiro lied. He was not really aware of it, but he did. When he said he would not question who made her feel the way she felt that night he found her broken, he lied. He already questioned it, several times. And all the time he was in human world it was on his mind constantly. Even when he didn't know what that girl was to him he questioned it. And even felt resentment towards the cause of that feeling. And maybe that was the reason he asked that human boy if he really was her friend. He never felt anything similar towards her other friend, her childhood friend Abarai Renji. Not even close. But when it came to Kurosaki Ichigo he became unsure of everything that substitute told him.<br>Right now that wasn't really important to him, because he had her for himself. She was right there in his arms and he did not have any need to think about anything but her. Her scent, her body, her touch… Her.

* * *

><p>"Where were you?" The moment he set foot in his office the voice of that woman filled the room. He glanced her way and continued to walk to his table. "Oi Captain! Did you hear me? I asked-"<p>

"I had work to do. And besides, it's none of your business." He said sitting in his chair. It was already little past eight in the morning and he was on the training grounds since six…but not alone.

"How can you be so cold? I was sitting here, waiting for you and you won't even tell me where you were…" Matsumoto whined jokingly, looking at her Captain that was already working on papers in front of him. "You are so secretive lately. If I didn't know any better I would say you were hiding something from me." She said and grinned.

"Matsumoto, I don't have time for your games. Go do something useful." His voice was strict and he remained working, not even moving his head to look her way. Matsumoto lifted one eyebrow. He seemed strange. Really strange. Usually he would yell at her right about now. Or he would just leave his own office, not having enough patience to talk to her. "And take your feet of that table." He said as a follow up, just motioning with the brush in his hand, still not looking at her. _Something is going on here._

"So you _are_ hiding something?" She said sitting up straight. He didn't even move. "Is it a girl Captain?" She said excitedly. He twitched. "It is, isn't it?"

"MATSUMOTO!" He yelled, causing her to stop her ranting. "Leave me alone and go finish your work." Toshiro said more calmly, trying so hard not to strangle her.

"Aw Captain, you are so mean sometimes." She whined, and threw herself back on the sofa sighing. "I always tell you when I find someone."

"Yes, and I keep telling you that I don't care. Even if I did, I wouldn't be able to remember them all." Toshiro said harshly and that made Matsumoto laugh. After that everything fell silent in the office, the only sound present was Toshiro's brush hitting the paper. Matsumoto was busy thinking about one person in particular. There was only one suspect in this situation, but she wanted to ask him that the best possible way she could, so she would be able to read his reactions only, because he wouldn't respond other way.

"You know, I saw Kuchiki girl yesterday…" She could see him behind her sofa. She didn't finish her sentence, but he didn't move either.

"Why are you telling _me_ this?" His voice was neutral.

"I just though you wanted to know that she looked better since that fight." Matsumoto's voice was much softer than moment ago. "She seemed rested. Although, Abarai says she tends to push herself more than she should." At that he lifted his head to look at her, frowning.

"Abarai?" Toshiro questioned, before even thinking it through. Matsumoto wanted to scream from happiness, but remained slightly serious and continued her speech.

"Yes. He said he saw her yesterday and tried to make her go home and rest, but failed. And that day, when we were fighting in human world, he tried to stop her too. You know, so she wouldn't go against her orders. But he said she was set on coming to help us and that when she decides something there is no possible way of making her change her mind." Now his expression changed again. It wasn't anything drastic, it was just…softer. "But you should try talking to her." She said through a smile.

"Why me?" And that was his biggest mistake. Not only did he respond to quickly than he should, but also his voice was shaken... at least more than usual. Matsumoto remained as serious as she could manage.

"Well, you're friends. And that's what friends do for each other." She said as if explaining a little child what friendship was, and then grinned. "And besides, that way you'll have a chance with her. You know, to get in her pants."

"MATSUMOTO!" But it was too late, because she was already out of his office, before he could even respond to that. And what would he say anyway. He could just yell at her and tell her to mind her own business, because there was no way he could defend from everything she said. He was a fool for even letting her get to him. She practically tricked him to find out what she wanted. He just prayed to gods she would not take this too far.

* * *

><p>"They said they would be back in a week. Teams are being organized as we speak." Orange top said walking home from school with two of his friends beside him. "I still don't get why they are taking this much time…" He said scratching the back of his head.<p>

"Do you think that Kuchiki-san will be back with them again?" Chad asked looking in his friend way, while Ishida just glanced their way, lifting his glasses up, waiting for Ichigo's reaction. Frown, that's all he got.

"How should I know?"

* * *

><p><em>There, it's done.<em> Finally, he finished everything he left before he went on that mission. He lifted his head to find darkness behind his window. He couldn't tell how much time he spent at that table, but was sure it was a lot, because night already came.  
>He stood up and stretched himself, feeling numbness leaving his body, although his neck hurt a little, probably because he sat in the same position for gods knew how long. The first night air woke him up immediately and he started walking slowly through the halls of his own division. He promised her they would see each other tonight, but they never said where so he stopped and closed his eyes, concentrating on her reiatsu. It didn't took him long to find her. He smirked and flash stepped to his desirable location. He knew exactly where she was.<p>

The thing was, it wasn't as late as he first thought it was and he saw a lot of shinigami around 13th division, so he frowned. But he wasn't going to back down now. His light steps echoed through the halls as he walked to reiatsu that called him.

There was a light tap on her wooden door and she lifted her head from some papers on her table confused, but as soon as she turned her attention towards the person behind it her eyes widened. She stood up quickly and opened the door to find one white-haired Captain standing there.

The only thing he heard before he was being pulled in was something about him being crazy and the next thing he knew he was standing in the middle of the room that belonged to Kuchiki Rukia. He glanced around it quickly, adjusting to his new surroundings and found out that Kuchiki Rukia was really serious about organizing things. More than him actually. Almost everything was in line, neatly folded, the only mess present were papers on her table. And her room didn't differ much from his. There was a table and few chairs, one bed, closet, shelves with books, door that probably led to her bathroom, and one door beside those, which he wasn't sure where it led. Although, it was much warmer that his own room, because it was filled with things she probably liked. And that's when he saw one huge pink bunny in the corner of her bed, but didn't have time to question it because he heard her speaking again.

"What are you doing here? Somebody could-"

"I promised I would come as soon as I finish my work." He said, looking at her. She was a bit startled, he could see. He would have been too, but he really didn't have enough time to think about what he was doing. Deep breath left her and she smirked.

"It's not even eight. How are you going to leave this place now? The halls are filled with people."

"I guess I'll just have to stay here until they leave." He smirked too and Rukia's eyes widened slightly.

"What?" He wanted to laugh when he saw her expression, but the only thing he allowed was smirk still set on his face.

"Why are you so surprised? You are the one that pulled me in." He said and took one step closer to her. "You are the one that wanted me in your room." And because of that he could see blush forming on her face. She frowned, but didn't move.

"It's not as if I wanted to. I had to pull you in, somebody could have seen you standing in front of my room like that."

"So you want me to leave?" He said more seriously, but still failed to wipe that smirk from his face. He turned around to grab a door handle."Fine. I'll just-"

"NO!" But as soon as he did that he was being pulled again. Rukia pulled a little harder than she intended and they bumped into each other. That made her blush even worse. Just recently she actually imagined he would find his way here, in her room, and now that he did…she was nervous. Really nervous. Toshiro caught her in his arms the moment they crashed into each other.

"Now you want me to stay? Decide already." She felt his breath on her lips, because they were standing so close to each other.

"Oh shut up!" That was all he heard before she pulled him down and kissed him. He responded immediately and pulled her even closer deepening the kiss moments after they lips met. But something was different now. He had to fight for dominance this time, because the petite shinigami he kissed was doing it as passionately as he was. This was new for him. But he liked it. He probably caused it, making her slightly irritated. Toshiro remembered how angry and even scary she can get. He forgot it due to her gentle side that appeared every time he came close. She didn't grip his haori this time, her arms were settled around his neck, while his were around her back. Oh, he liked this. Made him feel as if they were equal…and they were, aside from him being a Captain and her being a lieutenant. They were not those things now.  
>He turned her around slowly and pinned her to the wall, but not doing it really roughly, still not breaking the kiss. Even though they were getting more and more relaxed around each other he was sure she wasn't ready for him to lose his control…yet. Although she didn't mind this at all. He knew that because her response was a soft moan. He broke the kiss then, allowing them some much needed air and moved to her neck. He stopped for a second, because he felt her grip his hair roughly, but continued to kiss her neck as soon as he saw she wasn't doing it to stop him from what he started. While he placed an open kisses to her neck, he lifted her leg to his hip, making more room for him to come even closer. She surrendered, he felt it, because her whole body was responding to his every touch. Their breathing accelerated. But then she pulled him up and kissed him once again and that earned her a growl from that white-haired Captain. He wasn't sure if she was even aware of what she was doing to him. But he liked this side of her. A lot.<p>

And it was the first time Rukia heard him respond to her like that. It made the heat between her thighs get even worse. His body was pinned to her and she moved under his every touch, failing to quiet down her moans. He was making her weak. She felt as if she would melt any time soon.

His hand traveled down to the place where her shihakusho was tied, on her stomach, before he could even stop himself. He needed her. But… she wasn't ready. Toshiro felt her whole body stiffen the moment he touched the laces on her clothes, so he stopped and broke the kiss, their eyes locking.  
>Violets were startled a little and he saw she was trying to breathe evenly, and that wasn't really working out…for both of them. His hand went up and he cupped her face, caressing her cheeks with his fingers. She relaxed a little, her leg falling down so she can stand properly. He tried to make her feel as relaxed as he could. Toshiro really didn't want to rush her into anything, no matter how bad he wanted it. No matter how bad he yearned for her touch, her bare skin…for making her his. He wanted to claim her, mark her. Make everyone know that this girl here belonged to him and him only. But…not as bad as he wanted to make her trust him. And she wasn't there yet.<p>

"Will you please tell me why do you have that pink rabbit thing in here?" His voice wasn't back to normal, even though he tried his best to sound as that. Husky, deep tones left his mouth, but he saw her relaxing. They were still pinned to one another, he wasn't ready of letting her completely. She didn't mind that, he could see. But she frowned slightly, and Toshiro wasn't sure why exactly.

"That's not a _pink rabbit thing_." Rukia's voice was strict. "It's Chappy." He lifted one eyebrow, not really believing what he just heard.

"Chappy?" Amusement could be heard in his voice and her frown only got heavier.

"Yes, Chappy." Her voice was even more alarming now. He knew if he pushed just a little more she would get angry…really angry. Toshiro saw that side couple of times now.

"Okay." There was no need to go into an argument over a stuffed animal. Right now he really wasn't in the mood for that. But it was amusing. He never thought she would have something like that in her room. Lieutenant and a noble Kuchiki Rukia had a stuffed, pink animal on her bed. She sure knew how to surprise him over and over. He leaned down and kissed her again, but this time slowly and softly and she relaxed completely, probably letting go of the fact that he just called her Chappy a _pink rabbit thing_.  
>He broke the kiss then and moved away from her, allowing her to straighten herself and move away from the wall.<p>

"Since you have no other choice than staying here with me…" Oh he had other choice. He could have just flash stepped away from her room so fast those people out there wouldn't even know that he was here. They would probably think it was the wind. But yeah, let's stick to that first story…he _had to_ stay here. She moved a little farther, approaching those two doors in her room. "Are you hungry?" Rukia turned around and looked at him over her shoulder.

"Not really." She wanted to laugh hearing the annoyance in his voice. This was _that_ Captain Hitsugaya Toshiro everyone else knew. But she just smirked and left him alone in her room, going to that door he didn't know where it led.

And he was left there a little confused.  
>"Tsk." He walked to her table, frowning and sat on one of the chairs there, placing Hyorinmaru aside. This was strange for him. He would never imagine he would find himself in her room. Not that he minded. But still, now he could clearly see there were still sides of this girl he didn't know. Aside from that pink rabbit, her shelves were filled books and some kinds of notebooks he didn't recognize. Everything was in darker wood tones and warmer tones, except for that rabbit and one picture that was hanging on the wall. It was grayish, except for one cherry blossom in the middle. From where he sat it looked as if it was on some kind of hill and it was the only colorful thing on that picture. It somehow looked lonely. Or lost, he couldn't tell.<br>He glanced towards the papers on her table, picking one up, not even aware that he was doing it. She was clearly working. But the paper he picked up had her schedule and he frowned. Not only did it was filled with obligatory work hours, but it had extra more on it. This girl was worse than him. _Abarai says she tends to push herself more than she should._ Matsumoto's voice filled his head. _Guess that baboon knows her very well_, he though harsher than he wanted.  
>He placed the paper back and sighed, closing his eyes. He was definitely starting to feel tired. It was a long day. Aside from all that paperwork he had to finish, he worked on the upcoming mission too. He was up early, with Rukia on the training ground. They both needed the exercise, but he was doing it more for himself. He wanted to know her exact level, so he would be sure she was going to be fine accompanying him on the mission they were both called. She was strong, held herself good and had decent footwork, but he was still worried. The only thing on his mind the whole time they spared was that scene from human word…Rukia lying in the puddle of her own blood. He was determined not to let that happen again.<p>

"If you fall asleep there, I won't move you and you'll feel the result in the morning." Toshiro opened his eyes and saw her near him, holding a plate of food and tea. He just smirked. She placed it on the table, moving her papers aside. _So the room behind those doors was kitchen._ He didn't have that in his quarters, probably because his office was linked to his room and the kitchen was part of the office.

"I told you that I'm not hungry." He said looking up to meet her eyes.

"Well, neither am I, but we need to eat." Rukia said still standing.

"Fine." Every time she heard that annoyance in his voice she wanted to laugh. And then she remembered how that once scared her. _I guess that's his defense. I should have thought of that. It takes less energy than yelling at people._ "Why are you smiling like that?" She then realized she really let the grin appear on her face. His own words held a hint of amusement and small smirk could be seen on his face.

"I-I'm not smiling." She said startled, but quickly after that he pulled her down and she ended up sitting in his lap.

"Mhm." Was all he mumbled before he caught her lips again.

* * *

><p>"Are you sure?"<p>

"Yeah, I'm positive. I saw him." Blond haired woman said, hiding behind the bushes with her two friends in crime.

"But in her room? I don't think Rukia-" Red headed man said confused.

"I'm telling you, I saw it. Tell him Hisagi!"

"Yup, he went in." Hisagi said, hiding with other two, although he wasn't really sure why he agreed to this.

"Man, oh man, if Captain Kuchiki finds out about this-"

"He will not! You will shut your mouth hole and leave them be." Matsumoto said pointing a finger at him. She then turned around to look at Kuchiki Rukia's door again, as if waiting for something to happen or praying to gods to give her ability to see through walls. "I knew it! I knew that he was hiding something from me. And it's her. Oh, this is great! Finally-"

"Matsumoto, keep your voice down!" Hisagi said alarmingly. "Somebody is going to hear you and they will want to know what the hell are we doing hiding in the bushes near 13th division lieutenants room.

"But why didn't she tell me about this? I'm her best friend damn it, I deserve to know!" Renji whined.

"Oh this is wonderful! As soon as we're done here, we are going to celebrate!" Matsumoto exclaimed, clapping her hands. That earned her a _shush_ from Hisagi.

"Done here? What are we actually doing here Matsumoto? If they see us…Oh gods, if Rukia sees us she'll be furious." Renji said, little scared.

"What about Captain Hitsugaya? I don't want him to be angry at me. He tends to get…scary." Hisagi joined.

"Oh shut up, both of you. They aren't going to see us."

"Wait…when did you see this? And for how long were you two hiding here?" Renji asked, confused once again. He randomly got involved in this, during his everyday walks. He was not sure what was happening once Matsumoto dragged him down with him.

"I don't know… an hour ago."

"WHAT?"

"Shhh." Hisagi said, placing a finger to his mouth.

"And he is still in there?" Renji said, almost whispering.

"Yeah!" Matsumoto said through her grin.


	11. I Can't Fail

**A/N: **I know, I'm really late with this update. Sorry! I don't have any excuses...okay, maybe I do, but I will not bother you with it.  
>Anyway, this chapter... build up is finally over. I am sorry for any mistakes you might(will) find.<br>Thank you for your reviews and your support. Your words always make me smile, so... thank you! And I really hope you'll like this chapter too.

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Bleach!

* * *

><p><strong>Together Alone<strong>

_I Can't Fail_

* * *

><p>"I should… leave." Toshiro said looking at the girl that sat beside him. He wasn't sure for how long he stayed, but seeing her tired face he knew it was his time to leave. "I think it's safe enough now." Rukia lifted her head to find teal eyes looking directly at her violets.<p>

"A-Are you sure?" Her voice cracked a little. Violet eyes held a hint of disappointment, even though she tried her best not to look or sound that way, but failed terribly. Somehow her façade wasn't really working around that man. Why, she couldn't tell. Toshiro stood up and she followed.

"I already took too much of your time." He said softly. And the moment he finished his sentence he saw her shaking her head.

"Don't say that." Rukia's look fell to her dark wooden floor. "I'm glad you came." There was a small, almost non-existent smile on her face and when he saw that he wished he could've stayed longer. Toshiro then closed the distance between them, hearing the words that came out of her mouth, and that softness that she somehow always wore around him. Her eyes were slightly widened when he lifted her head. Their breath clashed since he came as closes as he could manage.

"Me too." She surrendered, feeling his lips touch her own. After few moments they broke the kiss and leaned so their foreheads were touching. He was running a hand through her raven locks but stopped after few moments, still looking at her eyes. She saw something flash through teal in front of her.

"Is…are you okay?" Her voice was a whisper, even though she tried to voice her question louder. Rukia saw a light frown on his face as he distanced himself a little. His hand was still in her hair, caressing her. Those teal eyes she knew well now wore a glimpse of strange feeling. Just seeing him like that was hard for her. She felt a light pain in her chest.

"I'm fine." He wasn't. "Tomorrow, I'll wait for you on the training grounds, so we can continue what we started this morning." Voice of a teal eyed Captain was much harsher then it was few moments ago. She wanted to rebel and ask him again what is going on in that head of his, but found herself nodding. He was definitely making her weak. "Good." He said and kissed her on her forehead lightly. "I'll see you tomorrow then." And he was gone. The air from his flash step startled her a little and she was left standing alone in her room looking at her already closed door.

"That was…fast." She frowned a little and tried to calm her raven locks that were messed up duo to that man flash step. "Damn it, he could have done that earlier. Nobody would even notice him outside." Her brows went up and her eyes widened for a second, before a small smile creped itself on her pale face after a sudden realization. _But he didn't_.

She turned around finally, looking away from her room door and took one distant glance over the papers on her table. Still, erasing that look from her mind was harder than it seemed. Something was bothering him. She found herself standing in her room, gripping the fabric on her chest. It was clear to her, she didn't like seeing him…the way she saw him, whatever that was. It wasn't good, that much she knew. _No, no…if he wants to tell me, he'll tell me. I'll wait._

* * *

><p>Toshiro stopped flash stepping as soon as he exited 13 division grounds and started walking slowly to his own quarters. Funny. He could not remember the last time he had this many emotions crammed inside of him. He wanted to say <em>screw it all<em> and return back from where he just came from. Just thinking about his room and that empty bed that awaited him stirred uneasiness in his stomach. Wasn't he already used to that? Hell, there wasn't anything else to get used to, except that.  
>The night was cold, and he welcomed the chilly wind that started around him. Except for light noises that came from trees around that moved on the wind, he was the only soul whose footsteps broke the calm surroundings. <em>I guess I really stayed late.<em>  
>Then again, he had to admit…he could not remember the last time he felt so relaxed with someone, even though that girl took over his mind. Was he even capable of doing anything else except think about her? So, not only did he think about her constantly, but he felt that he would relax only if she was near. It was evident, she was becoming someone very important to him and he frowned. Someone important to Hitsugaya Toshiro did not actually mean what it meant to other people. He was not capable of relaxing when he knew that that someone was somewhere else than beside him. Paranoid, call him that and see if he cares.<p>

He entered his room, leaving Hyorinmaru aside. His home was cold, as usual, since there was no way few sun rays could warm up the quarters of a man that was known for his icy demeanor. Not much personal stuff was exposed to a mere eye, since he really didn't care about that…gathering useless trash around was more of Matsumoto's thing. It didn't take long before he found himself aching for his bed, so he collapsed as soon as he took off his clothes. If he wanted to have a decent night of sleep he needs to put all his worry aside and think about everything tomorrow, when his head wasn't full of gibberish and when he wasn't washed with the scent of a certain raven-haired girl. Tomorrow, he'll organize everything tomorrow.

* * *

><p>"Shiro-chan!" He heard male voice behind him. The grip on Hyorinmaru became even tighter and that vein found its way back on his forehead.<p>

"Ukitake?" He turned around just enough to look at that older man over his shoulder, wearing a threatening expression. And that only made the smile on older Captain wider.

"Good, you're here." Ukitake said walking towards Toshiro. And Toshiro just sighed and turned his head back to look at the sword in his hands. Lately this man seemed to follow him everywhere.

"Is there something you need?" Toshiro's voice was tired. Ukitake stopped behind him and scratched his head.

"I saw you standing there so I assumed my lieutenant must be close by-"

"Why would you assume that?" Harsh voice left the teal eyed man.

"Well, she seems to always be near you lately." Ukitake said, carefully watching the back of that younger Captain.

"Why would-"

"Captain?" On the sound of that voice Toshiro turned around, as well as Captain Ukitake to find one raven-head girl standing near, looking at them slightly confused. Ukitake glanced back at Toshiro just enough so that that younger Captain would see a smile on his features. "Good morning sir." Rukia said bowing respectfully.

"Oh Rukia, we were just talking about you." He said and motioned for her to straighten herself up. Confusion was written on her face as she switched her gaze from her Captain to Toshiro behind him. Toshiro wore a heavy frown and she smiled.

"Is there something you need my assistance with sir?" Her voice was gentle as she returned to look at her good-natured Captain in front of her. Toshiro returned to his work…if work implied staring at the edge of his sword. Ukitake became slightly serious.

"I came to tell you I'll be absent for a while. I left Kiyone and Sentaro your schedule, but I wanted to see you before I leave. I will probably be absent the day your mission starts, but I want you to know that I entrusted you into care of Captain Hitsugaya." Toshiro twitched. _Did this man come here just to say that?_ Because telling his lieutenant that he left her a schedule was not really a very good reason to come, at least not in Hitsugaya's book.

"Care?" Rukia said, her eyes widened. And Hitsugaya still wasn't turning around.

"Oh Rukia, don't take it as an insult. Captain Hitsugaya was just worried about you, since you were injured on that last mission." She glanced quickly at the man in question behind Ukitake, but failed to catch his eyes since he wasn't facing her. Rukia then forced a smile and nodded.

"I understand Captain." Her voice never gave away any emotion. Ukitake nodded too.

"Good. You can continue with your training. I have to leave now." He said and she bowed down muttering a low goodbye to her gentle Captain. He left the two alone on the training grounds.

Almost a minute passed in dead silence, neither of them moving, until Rukia broke it.

"Were you the one that asked my Captain to keep me here after I got injured?" Her voice was neutral, almost too neutral for his liking. He turned around, his eyes wider than usual.

"No. Why would you ask me something like that?" Her look fell down, her raven hair hiding violet in her eyes.

"I can take care of myself."

"I never said-"

"You don't trust my abilities?" She spitted out, painfully, looking at the ground.

"That's not it." He said, already losing his temper.

"Then why did you talk to my Captain about me and this mission?" She lifted her head and caught his look. Toshiro frowned.

"Just because I went to talk to Ukitake about you doesn't mean I don't trust your abilities." His voice was much harsher than the last time she heard it. Light sigh escaped his lips. "You can take it as you like, but understand one thing Rukia…" He said and his frown became even heavier. "…even if you get mad at me and never want to see me again, it won't stop me from trying to protect you. That night…" He stopped for a second, pain clearly written on his features. "…I won't let that happen again." Toshiro didn't move, didn't broke their look and Rukia knew exactly on what he was referring when he said _that night_. She was surprised hearing him say something like that. Her mouth was slightly open as she starred at a man before her. His silvery-white hair was dancing on morning breeze, as he kept that frown on his face, but was set on looking at violet eyes, even though he didn't even seemed interested in her answer.

Rukia was silent for few moments, before her look fell to the ground again.

"From the way you just said that it seemed as if you blame yourself for what happened to me on that mission." His eyes widened once again as he kept staring at the girl, surprised at her words. "Don't." Rukia said boldly lifting her head to look at him, raven locks dancing on the wind, light frown decorating her pale face. "I told you already, and I am going to repeat it…I can take care of myself." He heard determination in her voice and failed to wipe surprised look on his face. It was already natural to her to read him like that. How she managed it, he couldn't tell. Was he that transparent? Maybe it was his fault. _But then again, nobody ever… _Was she even aware that she was doing it… constantly? Light sigh escaped his lips again as he closed his eyes for a moment, before opening them again, now completely in control of his emotions.

"And I told you…I don't care." Her face showed surprise as she watched teal eyed man, not believing what she just heard.

"W-Wha-"

"Didn't you just hear me, _Kuchiki_? Tsk, I always have to repeat everything to you." Corner of his lips went upward as he almost knocked down the girl before him from the look he gave her. "I said…I'll protect you even if that results in you never wanting to see me again. That means that you can, as far as I'm concerned, act like that all you want, but it won't stop me from doing what I said I would." Now he looked away, running a hand through his hair, somewhat uncomfortable from the words that just left his mouth.

She finally snapped back and smiled shyly. There was a mild blush on her face as she felt something pulling at her heart. He was different from all the men she knew…at least to her.

* * *

><p>"MATSUMOTO!"<p>

"I'm coming, I'm coming!" Blonde woman said entering her Captain office. He was standing impatiently near his table and she saw that he was barely restraining himself from snapping. "I just had to get some things-"

"We don't have time for that." Hitsugaya took his sword and placed it in its holder, waving for her to follow him and she did. They walked in silence and hurry. Usually Matsumoto would tease him right about now, but seeing his rigid composure she decided it was best to keep quiet. She wasn't really in the mood anyway, since she had to get up early in the morning.

"Did you read the schedule?" Strict voice of her Captain snapped her back to reality.

"I did sir." Their steps echoed through the almost empty halls of 10th division. It really was too early for anyone to be awake, even the sun was lazy and barely decorated the sky. She was walking behind him, but even though she couldn't see his face, heavy air around him told her that he was worried about something…or maybe pissed off, she didn't really know.

"Good. Follow it. I don't want anything to go bad this time. Do not act on your own. Is that clear?" Matsumoto still couldn't see his face, since he was determined to walk ahead of her in hurry.

"Got it, Captain." She said cheerfully, trying to ease the heavy atmosphere around them and that stopped him.

"Matsumoto, I am serious. If you don't follow the orders I'll make sure your paperwork is doubled when we come back." He glanced back over his shoulder and abruptly grimaced and that startled her. Black circles around his eyes became evident because of the sun rays and she could clearly see and hear determination.

"Yes sir." She said more seriously. "I'll follow your instructions."

"Good." He nodded and continued walking to their desired destination. Matsumoto wanted to say something else, but saw it was better not to. Whatever she said she already could see he knew, so she kept quiet. It was better to do that than to experience Hitsugaya Toshiro's anger. Or worse…be returned to office to work on remaining papers. Hell, any kind of mission was better than that.

"Captain Hitsugaya." Black-haired man said in acknowledgment of her Captain presence and Matsumoto finally snapped back to reality and scanned the area, while her Captain nodded to people around them. Before them stood Kuchiki Byakuya with his nervous-looking lieutenant Abarai Renji and younger Kuchiki behind. Matsumoto saw the looks her Captain and that raven-haired girl exchanged so she smiled. Still, the atmosphere didn't change at all. Guess even Kuchiki girl wasn't enough to take away all that tension her Captain carried.

"So you woke up on time after all, ha?" Renji said coming to Matsumoto's side. Kuchiki girl stayed still behind her older brother.

"I had to. Captain would tear me alive if I didn't." She said lazily, massaging her head with one hand, desperately trying to remove her alcohol-related headache. "What's up with you? You look like you have a stick in your ass." She said and grinned, while Renji just glanced back at three persons behind them. Matsumoto followed his look and saw that her Captain was still, looking somewhere, as well as Kuchiki Byakuya, while his sister tried her best to remain calm…at least that was the way she looked to Matsumoto. Renji turned again and came a little closer to Matsumoto.

"This is bad. If Captain Kuchiki founds out, he'll…" Whisper came out of red-headed mouth, while he tried his best not to panic. "Oh I can't even imagine what he'll do, but it won't be good, I can tell you that much."

"What the hell are you talking about Abarai?" Matsumoto said louder than that red-head would like.

"Damn it Matsumoto, lower your voice." Renji said, now on the very verge of panic. "I'm talking about Rukia and Captain Hitsugaya. If Captain Kuchiki founds out about them and then that I knew…we are all doomed."

"Oh that!" Blond woman said, now completely understanding his behavior. "First of all, calm down. He will definitely know something is going on if you continue acting like that. And second, if we don't tell him then I don't see how he will know. I'm pretty sure my Captain is careful enough, so we don't have to worry about them." Matsumoto said casually. "Did you tell her?"

"That I know?" She nodded. "No. I didn't. I don't know what to say anyway. I never expected this. To be honest, I always thought she liked Kurosaki." Matsumoto just shrugged her shoulders in response. She didn't even thought about Kuchiki Rukia before this, but if she had to she would probably assume the same thing as Renji. Not that that mattered anymore, since her Captain had marked his territory already and that meant only one thing: _no trespassing_. "I guess you're right, I have to get my act together, or else…"

"Good morning." Black-haired lieutenant said, approaching the two. Matsumoto shifted her gaze toward him and saw his Captain in the background, near her Captain and Kuchiki Byakuya.

"Hi Hisagi." Renji responded, while she just grinned. "Are we all here now?"

"No, fifth division is still on their way." Hisagi said.

"Fifth? Momo's division? She's coming?" Matsumoto snapped back into reality and reacted too impulsively and loudly to their liking. Too loudly indeed, and she saw her Captain turn to look at her at the mention of that name. _Damn it!_

"Did you even read the list Matsumoto? We all got it yesterday." Renji asked confused at her response.

"I didn't have the time for that." She said more calmly. "Now answer me, is she coming or not?"

* * *

><p>Was it just her, or the atmosphere was too heavy to handle? They were all now in human world, in Urahara's shop. She decided to stand outside; fresh air would do her good, while the Captain discussed something with blond-hair shop keeper. Renji was nowhere to be seen, so she sat down on the sidewalk and watched the cars and people moving around. Maybe she was the one carrying the heavy air around her? What the hell happened to her? She was happy enough this morning when she woke up. But now… And Hitsugaya was acting strange too. That she saw. Except for few exchanged looks, they never communicated the whole morning.<p>

"Ichigo!" She said more happily, seeing orange-top coming her way.

"Hey Rukia." He said, scratching his head.

"Where are the others?"

"They are coming. At least Chad and Inoue…I don't know about Ishida though." He said turning his head and glancing behind his back, as if they would appear that instant. "So midget, they gave you another mission, ha?" And of course, he was hit. Rukia hit him in the knee from her sitting position. He should have seen that coming. Ichigo let out a few painful noises, while she stood up and grinned.

"I told you not to call me that… strawberry." She responded and saw him frown.

"And I told you not to call me that!"

"What? Strawberry? But that's your name!" She said, acting out confusion.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I guess you didn't hear me from down there. It's Ich-" Another hit came, now in his stomach. "Damn it, Rukia!"

"Serves you right!"

"U-um, Kuchiki-san, Kurosaki-kun? Hello?" Inoue Orihime said, smiling nervously, as if she was interrupting something. Rukia turned and smiled seeing orange-hair woman and peaceful giant beside her.

"Oh Inoue! Hello! Nice to see you again!" Rukia's smile widened. "Hello Sado!" Chad just nodded, small smile appearing on his face. "And Inoue, I'm really grateful for your healing help last time." Orange-haired girl quickly looked at the man besides Rukia and saw him narrow his brows, turning his head at the other side, before she smiled weakly.

"N-No, no, I told you already, you don't need to thank me." Inoue said waving her hands defensively.

"Yeah, so, anyway, where's the rest? Ikkaku and Yumichika told us about the team organization and Urahara called me yesterday, telling me to come here." Ichigo interrupted, scratching his head as always, looking down at Rukia. At the mention of their mission she became more serious.

"They are inside. The team is bigger this time and they only told me the basics, the rest…well, only captains know that. But my guess would be that we're splitting in teams again, since I don't believe they know the current location of those hollows."

"Then, why are you standing here?" Ichigo said confused, while Rukia frowned, obviously irritated at that question.

"I just needed some fresh air. You go inside, and I'll try to find Renji. I can feel his reiatsu, so he must be close by." Ichigo just nodded and he, Chad and Inoue went towards the shop entrance, while Rukia unknowingly took a deep breath and went down the street to search for her childhood friend. Still, she felt uneasy. Why? Maybe she knew why, but hell if she would admit it to herself, let alone at loud.

* * *

><p>"There is no news about any of that. There were no any appearances or unusual reiatsu. I tried to track down those few remaining Captain Hitsugaya and his team fought the last time, but failed to find them. I must say, if they are planning something I sure don't know what…or why." Urahara said, his fan closed and his hat slightly pulled up so they could see his face. The room was silent for few moments, all of the captains in deep thought, or lack of words to say.<p>

"I see." Finally, someone decided to speak and it was none other than noble man, Kuchiki Byakuya. Hitsugaya narrowed his eyes, and prepared himself for any strict preposition this man was bound to give. "Then we should continue according to our given schedule and act as soon as possible." Luckily with that Hitsugaya could not argue. There was probably no one in that room that wanted this over with more that white-haired Captain of 10th division. Hell, not probably, it was certainly so.

"We need to arrange groups first." Hitsugaya said dryly. Black-haired Captain just glanced in his direction and Hitsugaya felt his body stiffen. This man was always judging or to put it better, evaluating every person that his eyes fell on and Hitsugaya hated it. Still, he ignored the older Kuchiki and looked back at Urahara, as if that blonde-haired man had any say in the matter. "There are too many of us here, so teams are inevitable."

"Yes, yes! You are quite correct Captain Hitsugaya!" The man, however, switched back to his cheerful behavior and Hitsugaya fought the urge to sigh in annoyance.

A minute more and he would probably resort to freezing them all together with that shop. An hour later as he went outside, he felt a light pain hugging his temples, so he stopped and leaned with his back on the shop wall. This was too much…he overstrained himself, it was obvious. But, it would be foolish of him to quit before he even properly started. Last night he finally finished everything about the schedule he knew he had to prepare this time. It was around 3 o'clock when he heard Matsumoto's happy-drunk voice pass his quarters and he allowed his head to fall on the cold pillow, knowing she was at least back home and if he had to he would drag her from her room tomorrow morning. It's better than pointlessly searching around Soul Society for her drunken ass. His hand went up and he started massaging the bridge of his nose, closing his eyes, trying desperately not to fall down from exhaustion. He wouldn't though. He would never allow himself to fail…not when he had an important task. But guess everything didn't went according to plan and he unwillingly remembered the name of the girl he saw yesterday on that piece of paper in his office, the very face of the girl he saw this morning. _Why now?_

Feeling the familiar reiatsu near him, his eyes bolted open as he slowly raised his head to find pair of beautiful violet eyes looking at him. He was _an asshole_, he concluded.

"A-Are you alright…Captain?" She said in a slow-easy-to-follow tone as if she was afraid he would break. Toshiro's eyes softened.

"I am…Kuchiki." He responded calmly, adding her last name to that sentence in case…well, in case.

"You seem tired. Did you sleep at all last night?" Rukia didn't move. She knew better than to come any nearer that she already was. This was a mission. There was no place for all those things here. Her words were much quieter, though. Toshiro cleared his already dried throat.

"Kuchiki…" He said stricter and locked their gazes. "I am fine. There is no need for concern." He knew she read even past those lines. "We had just organized teams. It'll be alright." He said as if he was reassuring her. But he knew, it was more for himself. He saw her narrowing her brows a little, probably not really contended with his answer, still…he knew she would accept it.

"Alright sir." She said, turning on her heel…leaving.

There was no way he would allow himself to collapse now. It was enough everything else was a mess…


	12. Questions

**A/N:** Finally! Yes, an update! You know when I told you to cherish those little happy HitsuRuki moments? Yup!  
>Thank you for your reviews and story alerts! I hope you'll like this chapter too! Also, I'm sorry for every little mistake you will surely find!<br>Oh, and how are you doing with anime ending? I know they'll probably start animating it again, and we do have manga, but still...I'm sad.

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Bleach!

* * *

><p>The night quickly came. The air was chilly, since the human world was slowly, but surely, meeting autumn. Leaves were still green, at least most of them, but she could smell early winter in the air. She knew the smell very well, she was part of it, so how could she not. Everyone was already inside, preparing for their mission, even though they still had no clue what was happening. At least lieutenants and those under them didn't. She wasn't too sure about captains though.<p>

She couldn't find sane reason why she wasn't in there with them. She had a reason, but it was too alarming for her to say it out loud, so she just went with _I need some fresh air_. She did need fresh air, since her head was full of things she didn't want there.  
>Everything was messed up somehow. Captains and the rest of the team were all worried and that made the air heavier and everyone on the edge because of it. Even Renji was somehow distant and kept his mouth shut, at least when she was near. She didn't ask what was bothering him, probably because she assumed it was related to their mission.<p>

Hitsugaya was keeping his distance too. They only spoke once and that was too brief to even consider it as conversation. He was tired, she could see. But she didn't have a chance to meet him alone and tell him that he needs to rest. And she wasn't even sure he would listen. Rukia wasn't the only person he ignored though. He was set not to look or talk to anyone, especially the girl he once called his childhood friend – Hinamori Momo. He probably had his reasons, but Rukia was still feeling uneasy because of it. This was all new to her. She never was this close to a man, and honestly she didn't even know what they actually were. Rukia spent her life fighting and obeying Kuchiki clan, so a time for these things never quite came in her life. At least not until now. Hitsugaya Toshiro showed her affection no other man before did and she liked the feeling. Although, now she felt disturbed. She didn't know why, but every time he wasn't around she felt pressure in her chest. And today when she saw his childhood friend, she felt a wave of anger. Why? How the hell should she know? This was all something she never experienced, but one thing was for sure…she wanted to punch that girl the hardest she could. But that didn't quite seem like a right thing to do and she couldn't understand why she was so mad at someone that never did a thing to her.

At least Ichigo and the rest were pretty normal, at least from what she saw this morning.

"Rukia, we need to go!"

"I'm coming." She said waving to orange-top who was standing with Chad and Inoue few feet away from her. Ishida was still not present, but she dismissed that thought quickly…he was a Quincy after all, he had a right to refuse. She stole one quick glance in the direction where the rest of the team was and that left her confused. Hitsugaya was looking her way for a moment, his lieutenant close by, but the way he turned his head to look away left her confused and slightly troubled. _What the hell is going on with him? What the hell is going on with me?_

All thoughts aside, she had to focus. Before everything, she was a shinigami and her duty was to protect the living and fight for them. She was a woman too, yes, but seeing how that somehow always sneaks up on her and punch her in the face, she decided she would concentrate on something she actually knew how to do.

"Alright, since Ishida is not here, we'll split in two groups and meet at the center of our destination, which is here." Rukia said, pointing to a map on her phone.

"Aren't we supposed to be in a group already?" Orange-top asked, looking at that petite shinigami.

"Yes, but this way we'll scan the area faster and if any one of us notices anything out of the ordinary, the person will just call the others." Kuchiki Rukia, lieutenant of division 13, said and returned her phone back in to her pocket. "Okay, so Inoue and I will leave this way, and you two go the other way. We'll meet at center in an hour."

"So you are now self proclaimed leader of this group?" Ichigo said, raising a brow.

"Glad we understood each other. Now go!" Rukia said with a smirk and her and Inoue went their way.

* * *

><p>"Captain? Sir?" Blonde-haired lieutenant tried again, this time waving her hand in front of his face. That got him.<p>

"Huh?" Teal-eyed man finally returned to reality and saw the concerned face of his, usually cheerful, lieutenant. He absorbed his surroundings and realized he was still on the roof. Good, he didn't go insane…he hoped. "What is it Matsumoto?" He murmured, feeling the almost forgotten headache coming back to haunt him. The noises from the city beneath them made his head pulsate even worse and he let that usual frown appear on his face again.

"Nothing, you just seem…lost?" She questioned, narrowing her brows.

"I'm fine."

"Are you? Because you've been acting strange since this morning. Maybe you should get some rest and come-"

"I said I'm fine." He almost yelled. His patience was running low lately. She gave a nod of her head and returned to her spot without a word. On any other night he would feel sorry for acting so harsh, but tonight… he really didn't care. And besides, she was the last of his worries. He never thought it would come to this, but Matsumoto Rangiku was currently the easiest thing he had to handle. Everything else seemed out of place. He had to deal with those captains, mostly Byakuya, and then the fact that they didn't even had a clue where the enemy was. Nobody knew what was happening and the only thing they had were empty theories. He was tired of guessing, but what other choice did he have.

He tried his best to stay calm. To calculate everything in his head and to determine, at least the best he could, what the enemy could want from them. They didn't seem too organized the last time he saw them and evaluating their power alone they didn't even seem as a decent threat to Soul Society. From all that the only logical thing he could see that connected those hollows and them was Human world.

"That's the only logical theory…"

"Huh?" Guess he lost the ability to keeps his thoughts to himself too. Toshiro turned his head to look at his lieutenant frowning.

"Nothing. I was just thinking out loud." He said, although he was already lost in his thoughts again.

"Oh…" Blond-haired woman said, her face showing concern. She decided to leave it at that. He was obviously not in the right state to try and get some kind of information. But it surprised her when he spoke again.

"If they attacked the Human world twice already and still haven't tried to access Soul Society, that means we're not the one they want, which is logical if we take in mind they're hollows and don't have a leader anymore. At least not someone as powerful as Aizen was." Hitsugaya said, looking ahead. Matsumoto blinked few times before she realized he was actually consulting her about their mission. "From all that it's clear they want something from Human world."

"What would they want if not souls?" Matsumoto bluntly said and Hitsugaya nodded.

"That is correct, but they are too organized."

"You think that they trying to collect them for some reason?" Blonde lieutenant asked, her eyes slightly widening.

"Yes. But I still can't think of a reason why they would do such a thing." He said and closed his eyes.

"You really thought this through."

"Well, it is a mission. That's my job." He said, slightly lost, with his eyes still closed.

"Are you sure you're alright…with everything?" Matsumoto tried once again, seeing him standing there, black circles around his eyes, while he looked lost in his thoughts. It took few moments before he nodded, more to himself, and opened his eyes.

"I should ask you the same question. You were always direct, don't change now. If you want to ask me about it, then do." He said, while he took out the phone from his pocket and started typing something. His lieutenant just stood there, her eyes now opened wide, while she gaped at her Captain. He definitely seemed more cold and distant than usual.

"Fine." She said at last. "Are you alright being on the same mission as _her_?"

"Yes." He said it as soon as she finished her sentence. She, once again, stood there not really knowing what to say. That wasn't the answer she expected. Hell, she wasn't even expecting he would allow her to ask that kind of a question.

"What about Kuchiki then?" Oh well, if she got a chance she'll use it, that was for sure.

"What about Kuchiki?" He said, still focusing on the small device in his hands.

"Are you okay to see her being here too?"

"It's a mission and she's been called. I don't have a say in that."

"I know that…" Matsumoto sighed. He was impossible to talk to, especially in a condition he was in now. "I'm asking, aren't you wondering where she is now, if she could get hurt…?"

"No. Are you done now?" He said, returning the phone back in to his pocket, and lifting his head to look at blonde-haired woman standing near him.

"What do you mean _no_?" Matsumoto said, looking surprised as ever. "The last time we were here you were-"

"I meant what I said. Now, please stop bothering me and return to your position." Matsumoto stood there for few moments, her mouth open from surprise. When she came to her senses she just sighed and turned on her heel. _What the hell is wrong with him?_

* * *

><p>"It's been three days and still nothing!" Red-haired lieutenant, Abarai Renji, said letting his head drop into his arms.<p>

"I can't take this anymore. I need to sleep!" And his blond-haired friend followed his action, sitting down next to him.

"I would just like to know what the fuck is going on around here!" Renji said, lifting his head.

"This mission is gotten pretty boring! No one will tell us anything, there are no hollows or any kind of reiatsu around and on top of that my Captain has been a really annoying pain in the ass. I would kill for a glass of sake right now!" Matsumoto said, whiningly.

"Where is he anyway?" Renji asked, looking around Urahara's yard. "I haven't seen him since yesterday…"

"Who knows…He's probably around here somewhere typing something on that phone of his. I don't know what's got into him. I think it's _her_ being around here-"

"Her?" Renji said, turning his head to look at Matsumoto, suspicious. "Rukia?"

"No, Momo."

"Momo?" Renji said, raising one eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"Oh don't tell me you don't know about that incident with him and Kira, and well, her." She said, turning fully to face him. "Everyone heard of it. And I've never seen him acting the way he did then. After all, he loved her since they were little. And when that happened he was so angry and I couldn't- OW! WHAT?" She yelled, finally starting to pay attention to the man before her, who was kicking her leg. She followed his eyes, turning around and saw Kuchiki Rukia standing behind her, just feet away. The raven-haired girl had a surprised look on her face, and Matsumoto almost slapped herself right there. But she managed to shake it off and smile to that petite shinigami. "Hey Kuchiki…"

"Oi Rukia, are you done? I need to go back to school!" The two sitting down heard a male voice behind her, and soon orange-haired substitute walked out of Urahara shop and stopped right beside her. "Oh, hey Renji, Rangiku-san!" He said, seeing the two lieutenants there too.

"Ichigo…" Renji said, in acknowledgment of his arrival. And that brought back Rukia to reality and she smiled, but Matsumoto saw that that wasn't an easy thing to do. _Great, now I've done it!_

"Y-Yeah. We need to report back tonight, but for now…we can go." Kuchiki Rukia said finally. "I'll see you later!" She said, looking at Renji and Matsumoto and waved. Ichigo did the same and they both left.

The two remaining sat there, looking at the back of the two leaving for few moments, before Renji spoke again.

"If that is what I think it is, I'll break that Captains neck!" He said, and Matsumoto saw the pained expression and clenched fists. "I don't give a damn if he's captain or what, if I see just one tear on her face and I found out he's responsible for it…" He stopped and closed his eyes for a second, trying to stay calm. "You better tell him to watch what he's doing!" Renji turned and shot one glare towards Matsumoto, before he stood up and flash-stepped after Ichigo and Rukia.

"Damn it!" Matsumoto mumbled, and stood up too, turning on her heel to enter Urahara shop.

* * *

><p>Rukia followed her orange-haired friend, who was walking slightly ahead of her and kept quiet. She couldn't tell if that was because he heard what she did, or if it was just his usual silence when he had no better things to say. It didn't matter anyway…<p>

She was too confused to even think about that. It's been three days since their mission started and no one knew what was going on. And it's been three days since she even said one word to Captain of 10th division Hitsugaya Toshiro. She couldn't deny it, she thought about that girl…Hinamori Momo, before she even heard Matsumoto. It crossed her mind that the girl was the reason Hitsugaya was acting cold, detached. But she fought it, trying desperately not to think about it, not to let her mind waver or think about anything but the mission… that didn't work out, at all.

And now, hearing Matsumoto saying that…What was she supposed to think now? There was no mistake, Hitsugaya Toshiro did everything to avoid her for the last three days. He barely even looked at her, and when he did and Rukia was quick enough to catch his look, he would turn his head with an expression she surely didn't like.

She felt Renji's reiatsu behind them, and she turned to see but there was no sign of him. Everyone was acting strange, except…

"Aren't we going to your home first?" She asked, seeing that Ichigo wasn't planning to take the rout she knew led to Kurosaki residence.

"Nah, I have my books, so we can go straight to school."

"But I left mine there!" She said and frowned and Ichigo raised a brow at that.

"So what? It's not like you actually go to school." Yes, that was true. She just sighed and returned to watch the path ahead.

She was sick of this. Being in the dark, not knowing what the hell is going on and she felt that she was losing her strength that kept her not thinking about things she knew she shouldn't. She shouldn't… but she did, anyway.

Was it all true? Was he actually still in love with that girl? She shook her head, thinking how stupid she must look now. Why did she even assume he was over that girl? She was his childhood friend, his whole life he did everything just to protect her. What place did Rukia have there? Just because she spoke to him those few times, doesn't mean she was someone equally important to him as that girl was…or well, still is obviously. How can she even compare to importance that girl, Hinamori Momo, was to him? _Stupid, stupid, stupid…_

But why did he kiss her? And why did he make such a promise to her? Why…? _Hah, why? People can lie Rukia, you seem to forget that._

And the worst part is…she surrendered. She fell. Allowed herself to feel and care and think someone was actually returning the same feelings.

Alone, that's what she was. And it was stupid to think otherwise. She was always alone, always had only herself to take care of and to even think that that would change was…_stupid_.

"Kurosaki-kun, Kuchiki-san!" She heard a cheerful girl voice and when she raised her head she saw they were already standing in front of Karakura High.

"Hello Inoue!" Rukia said and smiled…or at least tried. Ichigo just raised a hand in a greeting and passed the orange-haired beauty, going straight to entrance.

"Were there any news Kuchiki-san?" Inoue asked, returning from looking at back of orange-haired substitute, to the raven-haired girl still by her side.

"No, sadly none. We are still supposed to meet tonight for the next patrol." Rukia said, and started walking with Inoue to the entrance door.

"Oh…" The girl next to her said. "Um…K-Kuchiki-san?"

"Yes?" She turned to look at the girl, who was looking unsure of what she was going to tell.

"Um…Are…are you okay?" Rukia almost stopped in her tracks, as she starred at the girl with her violet eyes wide as they can get. When Inoue saw the way Rukia looked at her, she became even more nervous and started waving her hands defensively. "Um, no, no. I didn't mean to pry. You just…I-"

"It's okay Inoue." Rukia said and smiled, or at least tried to. "I'm fine. Just tired. You don't need to worry." She hurried to the classroom, leaving orange-haired beauty behind.

Inoue was left standing there for few moments, now looking at Rukia's back. _Just tired? I know that look well, Kuchiki-san._

* * *

><p>"Where?" Black-haired Captain said, turning to look at his nervous lieutenant.<p>

"Three blocks from here. They requested our help, sir." Abarai Renji said, trying so hard not to just pull the stoic man to go the way they should be, or just say _fuck it_ and go by himself. Finally the noble man nodded and Renji got that as a sign to leave immediately. And soon they were both flash-stepping to the destination they had to reach.

When the two representatives of sixth division finally came to the spot they were called, they saw that they indeed needed a backup. It was a blood bath. Lieutenant of 9th division Hisagi Shuuhei was busy trying to slash few Gillian, and they saw he wasn't doing very well. There were visible cuts on his body and his skin was covered in blood.

Just few feet away from him fought a girl that was known as lieutenant of 5th division Hinamori Momo. Renji could see that she was already in shikai and saw the girl panting desperately for air. Her shihakusho was slightly torn on the sides and there was blood dripping from her left shoulder. One Adjuchas stood before her, his skin pale as moon. He had a mask over his whole head, with strange markings that both Renji and Byakuya saw few times in Hueco Mundo. Even though the girl tried her best and moved as fastest she could, and even though the Adjuchas didn't even have a sword…they could see, it was a losing battle.

It was Byakuya who moved first, his katana immediately cutting the grey-skinned Adjuchas in front of that girl and before Renji even blinked the thing was defeated. Renji hurried to Hisagi's side and with him managed to slay the Gillian's in front of him, while his Captain stood idly, looking over their every move.

When the area was clean, and those hollows defeated, Renji quickly headed to Hinamori's side and saw her almost collapsing, but he caught her before her body reached the ground. Hisagi too hurried, even though his surroundings were spinning due to loss of blood.

"What happened here?" It was Renji who spoke first, looking at two lieutenants near him.

"We were ambushed. Six Gillian came behind our back and before we knew it Adjuchas cut her. They are even more powerful than the last time I've been here." Hisagi said, while he still panted hard, supporting himself on the wall near him.

"More powerful?" Kuchiki Byakuya asked, eyeing the black-haired lieutenant.

"Yes, the last time I've been here…" Renji ignored the conversation and turned to the girl beside him.

"Are you okay? Do you need healing?" He asked, and the girl who was supporting herself on his shoulder, smiled and shook her head.

"No, thank you. I'm fine."

"Are you sure? That wound-"

"MOMO!" And before Renji could even finish his sentence, a white stack of hair flashed in front of his eyes and it took him a moment or two to realize that Captain Hitsugaya was now standing in front of him. "What happened?" The prodigy said quickly, and scanned the brown-haired girl from head to toe.

"Shiro-chan…" The girl said and her smile grew. "We're fine. Thanks to Captain Kuchiki and Abarai. You don't need to wo-" And before she could even finish her sentence, she almost collapsed.

"She lost a lot of blood." Renji said and helped the girl get back on her feet. She was still conscious, but barely.

"I need to heal her." Hitsugaya said and started rolling up his sleeves, but before he could even start someone flash-stepping beside him interrupted him. Wind washed the ones standing around Hinamori, and they could see lieutenant of 13th division and human girl beside them. Rukia was holding Inoue around her waist, since the human girl didn't have the means to get anywhere faster.

"We got here as soon as we could!" Raven-haired girl said, releasing Inoue Orihime from her hold. Rukia looked over everyone standing there, ignoring the man beside her, quickly nodding to her brother and seeing the condition Hinamori Momo was, she turned to orange-haired girl beside her. "Inoue?"

"Got it!" Busty beauty said and went to the brown-haired girl beside Renji. "Souten Kisshun!" Orange shield appeared and she immediately started healing Hinamori.

"What happened?" Rukia asked Renji, leaving the spot beside Hitsugaya, who was left standing there looking at his childhood friend. "We got the call, but couldn't arrive sooner."

"They were ambushed. Captain Kuchiki and I were close, luckily."

"How many?"

"One Adjuchas and six Gillian's, according to Hisagi." Renji said, although he wasn't looking at her. He was busy eying the white-haired Captain, who Rukia obviously ignored. Hitsugaya Toshiro was too busy looking at brown-haired girl and as far as Renji could tell he didn't even look at Rukia.

"I need to call Ichigo and tell him not to come! He'll probably-"

"Oi!" Hearing the all too familiar voice of her orange-haired friend, Rukia just sighed and turned around to face him. "What the hell happened here?"

"I'm not explaining it to you too! Arrive sooner next time and you'll know." Abarai Renji said, turning around to see where his Captain is.

"What's with him?" Ichigo said, pointing a finger to Renji, who was already at older Kuchiki's side, discussing something.

"He's just on the edge…" Rukia said, and glanced towards the way Hitsugaya stood, for the first time that evening, who was still looking at Hinamori's barely conscious state. "…we all are."

After seeing Inoue quickly healing Hisagi too, Rukia flipped open her phone and checked the map.

"Alright, Inoue is done! We need to move! I still can't see anything on the radar, but it's not good if we leave our area unsupervised for too long. We need to be on alert, or else…well, you see what happened here." She said, concentrating on the device in her hand.

"Were you always this bossy, midget?" Ichigo said and grinned, and could see her frown very quickly.

"Shut it Kurosaki!" She said and kicked his knee. Rukia ignored his pain-related cries and called Orihime and Chad to join them.

"Rukia!" She turned, hearing her name and saw her childhood friend coming towards her. "If anything happens, let us know." He said. She nodded and the four of them flash-stepped away.

Renji turned on his heel, and went back to his Captain and the rest of them. He could see Hinamori was doing much better and he released one deep breath, relieved to see her alive. But, his calm face was quickly replaced by heavy frown when he saw white-haired Captain still by her side. He shouldn't be angry right now, it wasn't anything unusual seeing that, since everyone in their right mind would be worried and act as Hitsugaya Toshiro if their childhood friend was hurt. But…she wasn't just his childhood friend. She was the person he loved, or still does, Renji couldn't tell. And he wasn't just one of the captains. Hitsugaya was person Renji's childhood friend was supposedly seeing. And if anything was important to Renji, it was Kuchiki Rukia. He failed her once, and he made a promise with himself not to let that happen ever again. Not to let anything, or anyone, ever hurt her again.

But even though he would love to stay and observe white-haired prodigy, maybe even punch him in his smug face if he sees it was needed, he wasn't able to. His own Captain, Kuchiki Byakuya, was already done investigating and questioning two lieutenants and it was time for both him and Byakuya to return to their assigned part of Karakura Town. Renji just hoped, for the sake of that Captain of 10th division, that Byakuya doesn't find out anything. Or maybe he should have hoped he does, it depends on how you look at it.

Either way, he had to get back to work.

* * *

><p>"Do you think she'll be alright? I-I did heal her, but that cut was huge." Inoue Orihime said, while her and her friend Kuchiki Rukia kept on the lookout. Ichigo and Chad went the other way, since Rukia saw it was easier to scan the place if the split.<p>

"She will. You know yourself that your healing powers are strong, and if I saw correctly she didn't lose too much blood. Don't worry." Younger Kuchiki said, keeping one hand on the hilt of her sword while her other was busy typing something on the small device every shinigami had. She was sending a detailed report to her own Captain, since he told her to let him know if anything happens. "And she's not alone, so if she does faint or anything, someone will help her. Other shinigami can heal too, although not good as you, but it will do." Rukia said, and lifted her head for few seconds, just to look at the girl beside her and smile. Inoue let out a deep breath, obviously feeling reassured and returned to watch the road ahead.

"You're right, Kuchiki-san. Hisagi-san is there, and I think Captain Hitsugaya will stay too, since she's very important to him."

"Y-Yeah…" Rukia said, trying hard not to let her voice waver. "She _is_ very important to him."

Now Inoue Orihime glanced her way and saw scowl set on her face. And she swore it looked similar to Ichigo's.

"A-Ah…N-No…I meant they know each other for a very long time…l-like you and Abarai-san…or me and Tatsuki. Or-"

"It's okay, Inoue. I know what you meant." Rukia said more calmly, that small piece of anger that was present in her voice minute ago was completely erased. She was confused, even Inoue sensed that. There wasn't anything she had a right to be mad about, but either way…she still was. "Lieutenant Hinamori is someone Captain Hitsugaya knows his whole life and it's nice of him to come when she needed him." She said, although that was more to assure herself. _Calm down Kuchiki Rukia, you cannot and may not be angry about this. It's selfish and immature and…Argh!_

"He is very caring person. When you were injured the last time you all came, he was so worried and…You know, the night you got hurt he went back to find the thing that cut you Kuchiki-san, even though he was very tired. He looked like knight in armor, even though he didn't have armor..." Inoue Orihime said, already lost in her fantasies and Rukia spaced out for few moments, lost in her thoughts. "…and then, you know, the dragon suddenly appeared and Captain Hitsugaya had to cut him, but the spell that evil witch casted on him made him…" Yup, she indeed got lost in her fantasies.

Rukia could still hear her orange-haired friend talking something in the back of her mind, but… Why was he so contradicting? Why didn't he speak to her? He didn't even look at her…why? Everything about how he was behaving made her angry. And Kuchiki Rukia was not fun when she was angry. Hell, it wasn't safe when she was angry. _That's it! I'll talk to him the first opportunity I get! If he lied about everything and that girl is someone he wants to be with, then fine. At least I won't be walking around clueless._

"…and then robot told him to go right, even though-"

"Inoue, can you feel that?" Kuchiki Rukia said suddenly, interrupting the orange-haired girl, who was still talking nonsense. Inoue stopped, along with Rukia and her brows furrowed, for the first time that evening.

"Yes, it's strong."

"And it's not alone!" Raven-haired girl added. "I need to let Ichigo and Sado-kun know before we start chasing it." Inoue nodded, but didn't stop looking at somewhere, her thoughts concentrated on the reiatsu they both felt. It has started…


End file.
